I Have Learnt A Lot In The EPL – Pep Guardiola

Pep Guardiola has said he is still trying to improve as a coach after nine years in management.

“There is always more [as a coach]. You may think there isn’t — the players you coach are responsible for new ways of thinking and insights,” he said.

“Sometimes you discover things you previously didn’t know, maybe pairing these two players will give you a good midfield movement, something like that.

“When I left Barcelona, I thought that my space to revolutionise was ended, but no. We have seen that there is always a way to do new things, especially because you have different players. In Germany, I learned about counter-attacks and how important they are. Also about how much organised [football is in the] Bundesliga. The Germans are not only about running and running, but also about playing good football. I was very happy in Germany, especially in Munich.

“Finally in England I found a very tough league, many fixtures, weather conditions that affect the game, there is a lot of contact, a lot of permissiveness from the referees. It is a very intense league and we were able to control it all season long.”

“Last season has helped us to understand a lot of things so that we apply this season,” said Guardiola. “People usually believe that coaches, no matter who they are, arrive at a club and things start working fine. And it is not like that. Sometimes it goes faster, but sometimes it doesn’t.

“Sometimes I thought I won’t accomplish the same as always. But I have never doubt on how to do it, never. I am very clear and psychologically strong about it. From where I want to play, how I want to play, with who I want to play with and how we are doing it.

“If you don’t succeed, you go home and that’s it. No problem.”