Maresca: O’Reilly needs rest before returning to England squad

Enzo Maresca says Nico O’Reilly needs a period of rest before he can return to the England squad, after the Manchester City player was left out of the latest selection.

Manchester City travel to face Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Saturday, with the match marking the 10th round of the English Premier League.

O’Reilly and Phil Foden were both absent from England’s squad, but Maresca said O’Reilly’s omission was understandable because he is not yet fully fit.

“Nico is not 100% ready at the moment, so his absence from the England squad does not surprise me,” Maresca said at his news conference.

“We need to maintain his fitness because we know how important he is to us. There is no doubt that he will return to the national team in the future, but what he needs now is a period of rest so that he can be 100% ready when we return.”

Maresca also said he was working with Foden to help the midfielder rediscover his best form, despite being pleased with his recent performances for Manchester City.

“Foden is doing well with Manchester City, and my job now is to help him gradually return to his best level,” he said.

The manager also discussed Gianluigi Donnarumma’s errors, saying the goalkeeper recognised his mistakes but had also produced a number of outstanding saves during the season.

“Donnarumma knows that he has made some mistakes, but at the same time he also knows that he has made some great saves this season,” Maresca said.

“He is very easy to deal with because he immediately admits any mistake he makes. I spoke to him about it, but I did not feel the need to go into too much detail because he already knows and accepts that he has made some errors.”

Maresca was also asked how he expected Elliott Anderson to be received by Nottingham Forest supporters.

“I hope Elliott receives a good welcome from the Nottingham Forest fans, because what he gave the club was important, and the money he left for the club was important too,” he said.

“He is a dream player for any manager because he wants to learn, watch videos, understand things and improve every day.”