Maresca: This player brought a winning mentality to Manchester City
Huge praise before the derby
Italian coach Enzo Maresca has confirmed that Enzo Fernandez has brought a winning mentality to Manchester City, and it took no time at all to win over his new teammates.
Fernandez has been at City for less than a fortnight after arriving from Chelsea for 125 million pounds, a fee matching the Premier League record. His impact in the dressing room was immediate.
"You can see how his teammates talk about him in terms of a winning mentality," Maresca said, in remarks highlighted by ESPN. "Players who have already won and know how to win, it is important that they are in our squad."
The City coach added: "He works hard every day, and he is a well-mannered person. He is working well and that is what we need."
Maresca knows Fernandez well. He coached the midfielder at Chelsea for a season and a half.
Having tracked his development throughout, the City boss now sees a far greater attacking threat.
"He is improving a lot," the Italian continued. "Perhaps over the last two years with us he has become more of an attacking midfielder, whereas in the past he played in a deeper position."
"He is incredible around the box in terms of goals and assists, and in terms of leadership he is maturing a lot," he went on.
Fernandez made his City debut in the win over Coventry last weekend. An injury to Nico O'Reilly in the warm-up handed him a surprise promotion from the bench to the starting line-up.
The Argentine also featured in the midweek Champions League win over Porto, and could keep his place for Sunday's derby against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
City lost the corresponding fixture last January, and want to set that right this weekend.
Sunday marks Maresca's first Manchester derby in charge of City, but he insists his focus lies squarely on what a win would mean for the team and its supporters.
"Last year's match was not the best for us, but we hope to put in a good performance this season," he added.
"The main focus is not about it being my first derby, but rather I think more about the team, the fans and the league table," he went on.
"Of course, if we win it will be a good thing for me too, but I want to win because it is a good thing for everyone," he concluded.
