Pep Guardiola does not think Kelechi Iheanacho is 'good enough' says Manchester City legend

Pep Guardiola does not think Kelechi Iheanacho is good enough, according to Manchester City legend Shaun Goater. 'The Goat', who scored 103 goals in 212 appearances during his stint at the club, does not think Guardiola trusts the Nigerian starlet, who has scored five goals and provided four assists in just 443 minutes of Premier League action this season.

"I'm a massive believer in what a manager does rather than what he says and I'm sure he thinks and says that Kelechi is a great young talent, but Guardiola's actions make it clear that he doesn't believe he's good enough," Goater told sports.bwin.com. "You can't bring him on with very little time to go to score a goal.

"He obviously doesn't have confidence in him to play him alongside [Sergio] Aguero more regularly if things aren't going right. He has consistently come on and scored goals but still Guardiola doesn't trust him."

Iheanacho has had to make do with a bit-part role during his time at Manchester City due to the presence of Sergio Aguero, but he did fill in for the Argentina forward when he was suspended during the embryonic stages of the season. The 20-year-old took full advantage of the opportunity, scoring the winner against Manchester United at Old Trafford before notching against Bournemouth at The Etihad Stadium.

However, when Aguero was suspended for his wild lunge on Chelsea defender David Luiz, Guardiola opted to use the likes of Nolito and Raheem Sterling at the tip of a false nine formation. Iheanacho was instead consigned to the bench but did manage to get back to scoring ways against Hull City on Boxing Day, and City's young prospect will hope the Catalonian shows Goater et al just how much he trusts him when the Citizens travel to play Everton on Sunday afternoon.