Joao Cancelo has praised Pep Guardiola for the way he has developed in different positions during his time at Manchester City.
Cancelo arrived from Juventus in 2019 for £60m as a swashbuckling right-back but struggled to adapt to life at his new club as he failed to displace Kyle Walker from his favoured spot.
His situation was so tricky that a move away after less than a year was even considered, yet the Portugal international returned after the three-month break for Covid in 2020 as a new man and has been integral to Guardiola's plans since. Walker has still proven difficult to edge out, but Cancelo has made the left-back spot his own this season and nobody at the club has played more minutes than him.
Having threatened to redefine the full-back role last season as City stormed their way to another Premier League title, the 27-year-old has no problem with filling in wherever needed.
“I was brought up and developed as a right-back. However, I like to be versatile because during the year there are lots of injuries, so I want to help the team and I can adapt to any position the manager needs me," he said.
"The manager has helped me a lot in adapting to different positions on the pitch and I feel today I’m a much better player, both mentally, physically and tactically. I try to adapt to the team the best way I can to help to achieve our goals.
“I’m happy to be able to play in different positions. I think I’m the sort of player every team wants to have in their squad for my versatility. There are a lot of situations throughout the season, injuries, problems. So I’m always ready to help the group, whether it is as a right-back, left-back, midfielder, etc.
"What the manager wants me to do, I’ll always try to do my best to help the team.”
