Pep Guardiola: Manchester City's spending is done

Pep Guardiola insists champions Manchester City will not be adding to their squad in the January transfer window.

That rules out the prospect of City moving for another defensive midfielder after losing out on Jorginho to Chelsea last summer.

City boss Guardiola also claims thinking will not be altered by Benjamin Mendy’s latest injury.

Mendy, who has no natural replacement at left-back and missed the majority of last season after right knee surgery, could be out until mid-February following an operation on his left knee.

Guardiola said: “No. In January — no window. We are not going to spend anything. I am so happy with the squad, people are coming back, so no.” A January without signings would leave last summer’s £60 million (€67m) record buy Riyad Mahrez as the only addition to the City squad since they won the Premier League title last season.

City did invest £57m in defender Aymeric Laporte last January but Guardiola prefers not to do business during the winter window.

He said: “It’s much much, much better (not to buy in January). When we created the squad at the beginning of the season, it was to not go to the January (window) except (if) we have problems.

“But I have a deep squad and a lot of players cannot play when I trust them a lot. They believe I don’t like them but that is not true! I trust a lot in all the players, all of them and it’s a joy to be with them.

“When there are some injuries another one is going to play and, if not, you have a few players in the Academy that maybe are going to help us in a few moments or few minutes. We are not going to go to January in the market, no way.”

West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini insists his side will take the game to City this afternoon despite the memory of some recent hidings.

Champions City have won their last three trips to the London Stadium 4-1, 4-0 and 5-0, and have already racked up five wins by five or more goals this season.

Yet Hammers boss Pellegrini refuses to be intimidated and plans to go toe-to-toe with his former club when he faces them for the first time on Saturday.

“If you make a mistake, they have players who will take advantage. But they also have had difficult games this season. Lyon played well against them.

“Wolves played a good game against them. Liverpool and Tottenham played good games against them.

“Of course, we consider who we are playing. But we are not going to play the game just to have a draw and not to concede too many goals. We are going to try to use the game as a good test.”

Pellegrini maintains he bears City boss Pep Guardiola no ill will despite being replaced by the Spaniard at the Etihad after three years in which he won the Premier League, two League Cups and reached the Champions League semi-finals.

Also, while in charge of Real Madrid, Pellegrini was pipped by for the title by Guardiola’s Barcelona side despite a record 96-point haul.

Yet he said: “I have a good relationship with Pep, I have no problems with him. He was always a rival with me.

“With Manchester City I played twice against him with Bayern Munich and also with Real Madrid and Malaga when he was at Barcelona. Now we are going to play City against West Ham.

“I think he is a good manager who manages the team in the way I like to do also.

“To lose the title with 96 points and scoring 105 goals is not an easy way to do it — but that’s football and that’s why it is the most popular sport in the world.”