Last night, Mateo Kovacic made his first pre-season appearance for Manchester City following his return to the squad after a mini break. The midfielder had been given a bit of extra time off after going to Euro 2024 with Croatia. He and Josko Gvardiol did not get out of the group stage at the tournament, so therefore they returned a little earlier than the others. Kovacic was given a start last night by Pep, and his inclusion in the midfield saw the manager drop Kalvin Phillips back into defence in what was an eye-catching move. Phillips came in for praise from the Manchester Evening News for …