Ruben Dias says he is available for selection for Saturday’s FA Cup final as he warns his Manchester City teammates not to get ahead of themselves in the hunt for the Treble.
The defender has missed the last two games through injury and has not played since the 4-0 Champions League win over Real Madrid on May 17. Pep Guardiola indicated he, Jack Grealish, Kevin De Bruyne and Manuel Akanji were all doubts for the trip to Wembley.
But Dias has now returned to training having not taken part in sessions 10 days prior to the 1-0 final day loss to Brentford and says he feels “on fire”, adding: “I’m feeling good.”
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Dias lifted the Premier League trophy 11 days ago but is keen to ensure his side don't look too far ahead. “We’ve not done anything yet,” he underlined.
“We definitely know what we’re going for and we really want it. But we know if we start to think too far ahead then it will kill us. Our heads are on training. Little by little we think. Just think and do it.
“Of course it’d be a great achievement to win the double. We’ll celebrate it if we do and then we’ll think about what is coming because we are still not finished.”
City fly to Istanbul seven days after the FA Cup final in what will be a seismic game whether the Treble is still on or not.
When asked which final he feels is bigger, Dias responded: “The next one and the next one is Manchester United.”
He believes United will run them close this weekend, with October’s 6-3 home win and January’s 2-1 away defeat at the back of the mind.
Dias continued: “Our best chance of beating United is just by being Manchester City. It’ll be a tight game. A final is a final, it’ll always be tight whatever the odds. It’s a special competition for all of us and a special competition for the country. We want to win it very much.
“Those points of reference [the 6-3 win and 2-1 defeat] will be important but it’s a new game and a final is always different. The details make the difference, they are the things that matter the most. It’s about being who we are.
“We’ve played them, we know their strong points and weak points. In the end it’ll be about knowing them the best we can but most of all knowing ourselves and being the very best version of ourselves.
“It’s always good to be in a good, nervous mood. Having a bit of tension in these games is what makes you run more, makes you make a bigger effort and reach your best level. It’s good that all of us know how to manage it well.”
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