MANCHESTER -- Pep Guardiola has dismissed suggestions he has spoken to Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez about a possible move to Manchester City as "absolutely false."
Chilean newspaper El Mercurio alleged that the City manager had tried to convince Sanchez to move to the Etihad when his contract with the Gunners expires at the end of next season.
But speaking at a news conference ahead of City's Champions League clash with Celtic on Tuesday, Guardiola emphatically denied the claim.
"Absolutely false," he said. "The journalist is a liar. He's a liar. Alexis Sanchez would fit in any team in the world. The journalist is a liar."
Guardiola has also been linked with a move for Celtic striker Moussa Dembele, who scored twice in the Champions League draw between the sides in September.
France under-21 international Dembele has 17 goals this season, but Guardiola said he was just another in a long line of players to be linked with the club.
"If you read the newspapers in the last six months, since I became a coach at Manchester City, maybe I have had contact with 126 players to buy for Manchester City," he said. "Dembele is another one.
"Every week I have contact for the next season to change players. Alexis was the last one.
"But the quality [in Dembele] is there. He is an exceptional player."