Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola singled out Nico O’Reilly for praise after he scored “two fantastic goals” during the 3-1 win over Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup on Saturday evening.

The Premier League champions had to come from 1-0 down to secure their place in the quarter-finals, with O’Reilly scoring either side of half-time. The midfielder was selected out of position by Guardiola but the Catalan was delighted that the 19-year-old was able to cope so well in an unfamiliar role:

“He’s not a typical player from the Academy because they are all small and have big talent, but he has a big, big presence. Sometimes we take a good decision otherwise, he would not have scored two goals today.”

“Normally, he’s an attacking midfielder and runs to the box really well. He adapted really well to the full-back role. Nico’s another threat from set-pieces because we are not a tall team. He helps us and played really good with the ball, without the ball. Two fantastic goals.”

O’Reilly is showing real promise

The teenager scored his first senior goal against Salford in the third round of the FA Cup back in January, and he now has 3 goals from his last 3 appearances in the competition.

It remains to be seen whether Guardiola will begin to use him more often in the Premier League. He has made just two cameos so far against Ipswich Town and Newcastle.

City could have sold him to a Premier League rival

Chelsea reportedly made an approach to sign O’Reilly on deadline day at the start of February. The Blues were seemingly trying to replicate the success they had with recruiting Cole Palmer.

From the looks of things, though, it seems Guardiola is very keen to keep hold of the midfielder, who he clearly rates highly.

Find out who is in Manchester City’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here