Oscar Bobb produced a lively cameo in his first game for Manchester City, and interim manager Juanma Lillo stated that the club expects “big things” from the winger.
In the 5-1 victory over Fulham, the 20-year-old was a late substitute, but he still managed to display some sparks of his talent. Juanma Lillo felt the Norwegian had earned his place in the matchday squad.
After remaining with the club during the transfer window and winning two back-to-back Academy Player of the Year awards, Bobb has been promoted to the senior ranks. Jeremy Doku, a teammate who was also making his debut, started the game when he entered the lineup against Fulham because Jack Grealish was out. But Bobb stood out when given the chance.
Juanma Lillo believes Oscar Bobb can turn out to be a great talent
Bobb showed early potential with the first-team squad. But Juanma Lillo has urged patience despite his willingness to take chances in a game.
As Pep Guardiola recovers from back surgery, City’s assistant, who has filled in, stated
“We have great expectations for Oscar. He’s won his place in the side through talent. He’s very alive on the pitch, very daring. Bobb is someone who can play on the inside and the outside.”
Juanma Lillo further added saying
“But we need to be calm, we need to give him his time and he has to be patient himself and give himself that time. But it’s another great player we’ve got that’s come from the academy and we expect big things.”
Doku, the £55 million transfer from Rennes, made his debut. Doku played for 76 minutes until being taken off the pitch. Although there were a few fleeting glimpses of his legendary dribbling skills, it was a quiet beginning.
Lillo has high expectations from the Belgian winger
Despite the easy scoreline, Juanma Lillo thought City’s lack of fluidity in play didn’t help Doku. However, Lillo anticipates more from the Belgian winger in the future.
Juanma Lillo said
“The reason we played him is he can play really well on the wings and today we didn’t have Jack. But that’s not the reason he played, he could have played if Jack was available as well.”
He further added
“If you’re looking at the way he’s played today, we lacked that fluidity as a team and it was difficult to find him at times, in fact that was one of the reasons we had him switch wings in the first half, that was something we spoke with Pep about.”
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