Pep Guardiola has confessed that his heated conversation with Kevin De Bruyne on Sunday exploded because the Manchester City midfielder refused to be substituted. De Bruyne missed the final half-hour of City’s dramatic 1-1 tie with Liverpool as Guardiola made a brave tactical adjustment.

De Bruyne expressed his sentiments to Guardiola after seeing his number held aloft on the Anfield touchline. The pair had a lengthy, furious dispute in front of the Anfield crowd, which subsequently continued on the substitutes’ bench.

The high-stakes Premier League match was tightly poised at the time of the change, with John Stones’ opening, assisted by De Bruyne’s excellent corner, cancelled out by Alexis MacAllister’s penalty.

Despite constant Liverpool pressure in the second half, City held on and nearly stole all three points when Jeremy Doku rattled the post.

Guardiola told beIN Sports that De Bruyne’s substitution was completely tactical. When questioned if his rage arose from a reluctance to come off, the 32-year-old said, “Yeah.” “I like it.”

Guardiola said in his post-match press conference: “He’s delighted now. I enjoy the fact that he was upset. He’ll get an opportunity to prove me incorrect in the next game.” Because of his immense influence at the business end of the pitch, De Bruyne is usually one of the first players City looks to when things go tough.

The midfield maestro has nine assists in his previous nine matches across all competitions, including the corner routine that led to Stones’ goal at Anfield. De Bruyne is expected to return to play when City host Newcastle United in the FA Cup quarterfinals next weekend.

Ederson, on the other hand, might not be as lucky. The Sky Blues goalkeeper injured himself when giving away a reckless penalty, and Guardiola stated after the 1-1 draw that ‘it does not look good’.

Stefan Ortega is City’s capable deputy, and he may be called upon to guide the reigning triple winners through a difficult Premier League title chase if Ederson’s injury proves to be a long-term issue.

Guardiola’s squad is now third in the table, one point behind the leaders with ten games remaining. Regarding Liverpool’s second-half onslaught, the former Barcelona manager stated, “To avoid [a game like that], we needed more control, more passes, and we could not do it.”