With a menacing fixture schedule looming ominously for Manchester City, there’s one selection dilemma that Pep Guardiola must get right for the long term interests of the club.

The tough fixtures come thick and fast for City, with PSG, Chelsea, Arsenal, Newcastle, Liverpool and Nottingham Forest all on the horizon in a season-defining stint in which Guardiola will be keen to prove this season’s poor patch was an anomaly.

Within that, there are numerous interesting subplots, one of which is how James McAtee will be used.

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The 22-year-old sent a reminder of his talents against his home town club Salford City in the FA Cup, and scored his first Premier League goal for City against Ipswich on the weekend.

He is out of contract in 18 months' time, and has chartered interest far and wide, with the likes of Newcastle and Fulham rumoured to be interested, as well as Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga.

Nonetheless, Pep has made his intentions clear, telling the press that he’d like McAtee to stay at City for “many years” last week.

McAtee’s future could well be dictated by this next block of games. What is clear is that he should start against Club Brugge and Leyton Orient, and see good minutes against Tottenham, which are the lighter fixtures embedded into this crucial six weeks.

However, minutes in big games are in the best interests for all parties. Should he leave in the summer, City can demand a much higher fee should he play in the big games whilst he himself will want to front foot negotiations.

The primary objective, of course, would be to secure his long-term commitment once he has proven he can perform on the big stage, a chance he has not yet been afforded at City.

Kevin De Bruyne’s management in City’s midfield will be crucial in this next block, so rotation in the back end of games will be vital to keep him fresh; it’s no coincidence that City’s upturn in form has coincided with his.

As evidenced with the draw against Brentford, Guardiola will be reluctant to throw McAtee on in tight matches, but playing De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva for full 90s every match is unsustainable, and the load should not be placed solely on new signing Claudio Echeverri as he acclimatises to the Premier League’s high demand.

If any of these games produce a foregone conclusion with 20-30 minutes to go, McAtee deserves minutes in lower-pressure situations to test his mettle against higher class opposition.

Conversely, if faith is shown and McAtee is unable to step up to the plate, at least the cards have been played. City will be desperate to avoid another Cole Palmer situation where a player excels having never had a proper chance to prove themselves in a City shirt, and there is no better time than the present to learn exactly where McAtee stands.

However McAtee’s future looks – with City or elsewhere – Guardiola should put some actions behind his words and give McAtee minutes whilst his confidence is high. Should he continue to draw comparisons to Phil Foden, or fall by the wayside, there will be clarity.