Redmond on form and family

After Raheem Sterling's 96th-minute winner for Manchester City at the Etihad last season against Southampton, the enigmatic Guardiola made a beeline for Nathan Redmond who had left an impression on the Catalan.

Redmond, in an interview with the 'Daily Mail', recalled: "Last season was one of the worst seasons of my life. I was looking back at it and thinking, this is not me, this is not the sort of player that has gained me the reputation that even Pep Guardiola can say to me: 'You are one of the best English players I've seen: why are you not taking players on like you did before?'"

"I remember one game, it was Chelsea at home. I was still in a bit of a rough position and I was sitting up in my box.

"I was just sitting there, watching the game with a frustrated face, thinking: 'What am I doing? I should be out there, helping the boys get wins'. Instead I'm sitting here in what feels like a world of trouble.

"I'd look at clips and think, 'Who's that?' That's not what made me me. That's not what I did at Birmingham and at Norwich. I was no use to anybody on the pitch. I'd get the ball and as soon as I did, I'd pass it. That's not me."

The Englishman also spoke of his moth Michelle, who suffered the stillbirth of her daughter in 2012. Redmond said: "My mum was the strongest woman that I've ever known. She could take on anyone in my eyes. To see something like losing a child break a woman who I thought was unbreakable... then to me, makes me realise that football is just a game. And I'm blessed to be able to do it.

"But there's much bigger things that are more important. Like being alive. Waking up. Being thankful. Stuff like that, which people take for granted every single day.

"My mum knows me better than anybody. But I think I was in a place where I was making up excuses as to why I'm not doing or changing or being the person that I am on the pitch. My mum just said, 'You are the only one that's caused this. It's nobody else'.

"My mum said if I ever got a tattoo she would kill me. But my mum has tattoos, so it makes no sense!"