‘Who does Messi play for?’ Pep Guardiola sees Barcelona as Champions League favourites still
Manchester City have chalked up 18 successive Premier League wins but their manager says his old side remain Europe’s most fearsome
After Manchester City continued their seemingly unstoppable Premier League rampage on Wednesday, manager Pep Guardiola was left trying to calm the growing hype by suggesting his old Barcelona charges still remain Europe’s team to beat.
Even though City were wasteful and a mite distracted in their 1-0 win at Newcastle, the fact they still chalked up a record-extending 18th successive Premier League win with some comfort still told of their relentless excellence.
So, as Guardiola reflected on a 15-point lead at the top of the table, it was little surprise he was asked afterwards whether City now had to be considered favourites for the Champions League as Europe’s mesmerising form side.
“Who does [Lionel] Messi play for?” was Guardiola’s response.
“Barcelona,” came the reporter’s answer.
“So they’re the favourites,” shrugged the manager.
Guardiola should know. As the man who oversaw Messi’s flowering at the Nou Camp during a triumphant reign, he was once so enraptured on the touchline, he turned to a fan, saying: “If it wasn’t for him, I’d be coaching in La Segunda [the second division of La Liga]”.
Yet his City side continue to play such a dazzling brand of football many observers feel they now look equipped to take the mantle of the continent’s pass-and-move masters.
The compliments showering him and his team seem to have only made Guardiola keener to ignore all the swooning from the rest of English football.
Even his compatriot Rafa Benitez seemed so awestruck by Guardiola’s creation he set up his Newcastle side with an approach of startling negativity until a Raheem Sterling goal after half an hour of incessant City pressure demanded a change.
“We did absolutely everything but it is difficult to play when the other team doesn’t want to play,” sighed Guardiola in what seemed an accurate description of much of the one-sided fare.
Yet City only scoring once and nearly surrendering a late equaliser despite hitting the woodwork three times, enjoying 78 per cent possession and having 21 shots to Newcastle’s six, showed to Guardiola that hard graft still lies ahead.
If there are any concerns for him, they surely lie in the continuing problems he has with the fitness of his central defenders.
Once again, the injury-plagued captain Vincent Kompany limped off after minutes with an apparent recurrence of his persistent calf problems.
“I don’t know,” Guardiola said, when asked about the severity of the latest injury. “I don’t know what is going to happen. Unfortunately he is injured again like the last three years.
“We are going to see how long it will be before he is ready.”
