The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Pep Guardiola

  • English Premier League has made me stronger – Guardiola

    Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola believes the competitive nature and sheer unpredictability of the English Premier League has presented him with the biggest challenge of his career.

    Prior to his move to Manchester, Guardiola collected three Spanish La Liga titles and two UEFA Champions League trophies with FC Barcelona.

    He then led Bayern Munich to three consecutive Bundesliga crowns in competitions dominated by very few teams.

    However, the Spaniard said it felt like he needed to learn a whole new set of skills after arriving in England in 2016.

    He was forced to cope with heavy fixture congestion and a title challenge from five other contenders.

    “I am a better manager than I was in Germany, and I am a better manager now than I was at FC Barcelona by far, just for the fact of being there,” he said at the Peers Annual Lecture at Liverpool University.

    “Now, I feel being here I am a better manager too, because I learned to handle this incredible league in many circumstances.

    Read Also: Guardiola: repeat of record-breaking season ‘impossible’

    “It is the toughest one, for the amount of games, for the weather and the referees saying: `play (on), play (on), play (on)’ and the competitors, there are many.

    “It is the only country that five or six (teams) can win the Premier League.”

    Guardiola led Manchester City to the English Premier League title in record-breaking fashion last season, finishing on 100 points and 106 goals in 38 matches.

    Manchester City also lifted the League Cup and Community Shield this year to take Guardiola’s tally to 24 major trophies.

    And the Spaniard has admitted that transferring his skills to the international stage could one day come to fruition.

    “Sooner or later, it will happen because every three days I would like to be involved, but a little bit more calm, play more golf,” he added.

    “If I have a chance and some international team wants to come `knock, knock’. We will see.”

     

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  • Guardiola: Don’t expect massive City spending this summer

    Premier League champions Manchester City are targeting just one or two signings for next season, manager Pep Guardiola has said.

    City, owned by billionaire Sheikh Mansour, spent more than 300 million pounds ($405.42 million) on players last season.

    That heavy investment paid off with City winning the Premier League and League Cup, but Guardiola said fans should not expect similar spending.

    Read Also: Guardiola hopes Arteta would ignore Arsenal overtures

    “We will sign one or two more,’’ Guardiola told Sky Sports, adding: “… maybe people don’t believe me, but we don’t have the money to invest 300 million pounds every season.

    “We invested a lot of money and will invest less in the future, because instead of doing it in two or three transfer windows, we did it in one.

    “The fundamental success of this season is the quality of the players. People say you won because you invest a lot, they are right.’

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  • Guardiola hopes Arteta would ignore Arsenal overtures

    Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said he would understand if assistant coach Mikel Arteta was lured to Arsenal to become their next manager,

    But he hopes the Spaniard remains at the Premier League champions to finish what they started.

    Guardiola’s assistant at City since 2016, former Arsenal Captain Arteta has been mentioned as one of the leading contenders to succeed Arsene Wenger, who brought the curtain down on his 22-year reign at the London club on Sunday.

    “Mikel’s contribution has been amazing,” Guardiola told reporters after City’s 1-0 win over Southampton.

    Read Also: Misconduct: Guardiola, Liverpool to know fate May 31.

    “We work together so good and him staying will (make me) the happiest guy in the world.

    “If he decides to move because he has this offer, I will not say you don’t have to go. I want the best for my friends.

    “I will be so sad, but I will understand his position. It is his career, his life, but hopefully he can stay and finish what we started.”

    Former midfielder Arteta made 150 appearances for Arsenal under Wenger from 2011 to 2016. \

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  • Injured Aguero should be ready for World Cup – Guardiola

    Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero will be out of action for up to five weeks but he should be ready for the World Cup with Argentina, manager Pep Guardiola says.

    The 29-year-old, who has scored 21 English Premier League goals for Manchester City this season, is recovering from knee surgery having not started a match for the last six weeks.

    When asked on Friday if Aguero’s season with Manchester City was over, Guardiola said: “Here, yeah. It’s four or five weeks (out). We will try and get him ready for the World Cup.

    “He is in Barcelona right now. For the first part of the rehabilitation, he is going to be there.”

    Aguero is expected to be a key figure for Argentina, who play their opening World Cup match against Iceland on June 16.

    Manchester City were crowned English Premier League champions last weekend and Guardiola wants his team to break records before the end of the campaign.

    They could finish with the most points, most wins and most goals in a single English Premier League season.

    Now, the Spanish manager remains keen to keep his players motivated ahead of Sunday’s clash with Swansea City.

    “In the past when I won the league early at FC Bayern Munich and FC Barcelona, the next few games were not good,” Guardiola added.

    “But a good argument to keep going is the records. It would be nice to finish good in terms of good feelings.

    “The important thing is to win the title. But, maybe the records can help us (to) be focused against the clubs fighting to avoid relegation.”

    Manchester City’s opponents Swansea are currently 17th in the league and four points clear of the relegation zone with five matches to play.

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  • Misconduct: Guardiola, Liverpool to know fate May 31.

     

    Manchester City  Coach Pep Guardiola and Liverpool will know the type of hammer that will fall on them come May 31 after they were charged for improper conduct during the two legged Champions League clash that saw city fall by the way side while Liverpool progressed to the semi finals.

    Liverpool emerged victorious both home and away to progress but the conduct of their fans during the first leg at Artfield resulting in the damage of Manchester City bus among other things was consider unacceptable by UEFA which has vowed to investigate and decide on what to do. Guardiola on the other hand was giving the marching orders after confronting centre referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz during the second leg tie that ended 2-1 in favour of the Reds who had enjoyed a 3-0 victory in the first leg.

    Guardiola’s UEFA rap sheet includes two breaches of the organisation’s disciplinary regulations – “dismissal from the bench” and “improper conduct of the coach”.

    While the appointed date remains about 50 days away the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach insists that his reaction after what he considered zenith of poor officiating does not amount to misconduct adding that he was polite in his complaint to his country man referee chose to do the unacceptable describing the referee as one who has a way of seeing the opposite of glaring facts.

    Speaking to BT Sport after the match, the City manager spoke witheringly of Mateu Lahoz’s officiating.

    “I said it [Sane’s effort] was a goal. I didn’t insult him; I was polite, I was correct. But Mateu Lahoz is a special guy, he likes to be different, he likes to be special,” he said.

    “I know what happened in Monaco last season, at 1-1, with an incredible penalty [not given to] Sergio Aguero.

    “He’s special. When everybody sees things, he likes to decide the opposite. I didn’t say any wrong word.”

    Liverpool whose fans claim the possibility of winning the Champions league is high have been charged under article 16 (2) of the UEFA regulations in relation to fans setting off fireworks and throwing objects.

  • Liverpool face anxious wait over Salah injury

    Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah has assured club manager Juergen Klopp he’s “all fine, all good’’ after picking up an injury during the club’s UEFA Champions League clash with Manchester City on Wednesday.

    But Klopp admits he is concerned over the fitness of his leading goalscorer after he limped off seven minutes after the interval at Anfield on Wednesday.

    This was after the Egyptian had scored the opening goal in Liverpool’s 3-0 win over Pep Guardiola’s side in the first leg of the quarter-final.

    Klopp confirmed the 25-year-old, who has scored 38 goals for Liverpool in all competitions this season, will be assessed in the coming days.

    Read Also: Liverpool stun Manchester City with 3-0 win at Anfield

    This is ahead of their English Premier League clash against local rivals Everton at Goodison Park.

    “About Mo, I don’t know at the moment,” Klopp told reporters. “He came to the sideline and said he feels sometimes, something. That was enough for me to not even ask the doctor how he was. So, we immediately took him off the pitch.

    “After the game I asked him and he said, ‘I will be good, it will be fine’. But now we have to wait for the real diagnosis, not Mo’s self-diagnosis.”

    Liverpool will defend their three-goal advantage against Manchester City in the return leg at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday.

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  • Aguero ruled out of Man.City/ Liverpool UCL clash

    Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has been ruled out of Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final first leg tie against Liverpool at Anfield after failing to recover in time from a thigh injury.

    The Argentine is City’s all-time top scorer having notched 199 goals in all competitions for the club.

    “He has stayed in Manchester, he didn’t come,” City manager Pep Guardiola told a news conference ahead of training on Tuesday.

    “He’s been injured for the last two weeks and he still isn’t fit,” added the Spanish manager.

    The City boss was unable to say if Aguero will be fit for Saturday’s Premier League derby clash with Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium.

    Aguero’s absence means a likely start for Brazilian Gabriel Jesus in attack.

    There was some good news on the injury front for City with left back Fabian Delph, who has been out since February, fit again and in contention for a place in the starting line-up.

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  • Pep shares moment with happy Man City owner

     

    Pep Guardiola has met Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed and the club’s chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak on Wednesday afternoon as the Spaniard enjoys a trip away in Dubai.

    The Spaniard was pictured in high spirits as he talked with the deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and the Emirati entrepreneur in an office while his squad enjoyed some leisurely time near the beach.

    Meanwhile, Gabriel Jesus, Fernandinho, Ederson and Bernardo Silva were all having a spot of lunch during some downtime while out in the United Arab Emirates.

    Sergio Aguero also looked relaxed in a photo on his Instagram page, as he soaked in the sun by the sandy beach.

    The striker is set to miss City’s trip to Stoke on Monday evening with a knee injury.

    The Argentine announced on his official Twitter feed that he expected to be out for up to two weeks with the injury, meaning he could be back for the trip to Everton at the end of this month.

    And it wasn’t just the beach where the City players looked like they were having a good time.

    Jesus, Kyle Walker and Raheem Sterling all tried their hand at going in goal during one of their training sessions.

    The England right back pulled off some audacious saves, mimicking Colombia’s Rene Higuita’s infamous scorpian kick against England in 1995.

    Sterling didn’t appear as convincing in goal as he does up front while Jesus relished the challenge of filling Ederson’s boots. City are expected to fly back to England sometime later this week.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Guardiola fined £20,000 for wearing yellow ribbon

    Guardiola fined £20,000 for wearing yellow ribbon

     

    Pep Guardiola has been fined £20,000 and warned as to his future conduct for wearing a yellow ribbon on the sidelines.

    The Manchester City boss had been wearing the ribbon to press conferences and on the touchline, as a show of support for four Catalan politicians who have been imprisoned.

    Guardiola meanwhile has rubbished speculation suggesting he could sign a contract extension in the coming weeks.

    Recent reports in Spain claimed Guardiola’s agent, Josep Maria Orobitg, had flown to Manchester to complete the negotiations.

    But the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss, whose initial three-year contract started in 2016, flatly denied the rumour that a deal new is imminent.

    City would understandably be eager to tie down the 47-year-old as he looks to guide the Premier League leaders to a hat-trick of trophies this season.

    “Sometimes journalists receive bad information,” Guardiola said on Friday.

    “My agent is not in town. Was not, is not, will not be in town for the next six weeks.”

    Guardiola’s side visit struggling Stoke City on Monday as they seek to mount an immediate response to Wednesday’s surprise, albeit inconsequential, Champions League loss to Basel.

    Raheem Sterling and Fernandinho could both return from hamstring injuries, while Fabian Delph is also in contention to feature at bet365 Stadium.

    “Some of the players are better. Fernandinho and Raheem Sterling are much better,” Guardiola said.

    “We have one or two training sessions until the game. We are going to decide on Sunday. Fabian Delph is [uncertain].

    “The players are off today so I do not know the exact situation.”

    David Silva is expected to be in the squad after missing the Basel match for personal reasons.

  • Manchester City title wins can help De Bruyne claim Ballon d’Or

    Manchester City title wins can help De Bruyne claim Ballon d’Or

    Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne will be a serious Ballon d‘Or contender if he wins major titles with the English Premier League club, his club manager Pep Guardiola says.

    De Bruyne has been vital to Manchester City’s dominance this campaign with the 26-year-old notching a league-high 14 assists, including three in Saturday’s 5-1 rout of Leicester City.

    “No doubt,’’ Guardiola told reporters when asked if the Belgian could win the prestigious individual award. “He is not (just doing it in) one game. It’s the whole season, every three days playing that way.

    “But he knows and everyone knows, to be there you have to win titles — and titles and titles, especially one. But the way he’s played it’s difficult to find one (better) in Europe.”

    De Bruyne has scored 11 goals and provided 18 assists across all competitions for Manchester City this season, helping them establish a 16-point lead atop the league table.

    Read Also: Manchester City get chance for revenge at Wigan in FA Cup

    But the midfielder is not focused on individual honors.

    “To be fair, when I am busy playing football I don’t care (about that),” De Bruyne said.

    “I do everything to win titles with the team. What happens after is an extra. I am very pleased with the way everything is going for me. I am playing this way because the team is playing this way…

    “At the end, if you get an individual honour, it is beautiful.”

    Manchester City remains in contention to win the quadruple as they prepare for Tuesday’s match against Basel in the UEFA Champions League knockout stages.

    This will be followed by an FA Cup fifth round clash against Wigan Athletic and the League Cup final against Arsenal.

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