Pep Guardiola on relentless City smashing five past Sparta

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Pep Guardiola on relentless City smashing five past Sparta  23/10/2024  uefa24  etihad stadium, Manchester, Uk

Transcript

00:00Evening, guys, we've taken a show of hands, we'll come to as many of you as we can.

00:15We'll take questions in English first, and if there's anything in Czech,

00:18we'll take those towards the end.

00:19Somewhere to start, please?

00:21Pep?

00:22Pep, obviously an excellent result, what did you make of your team's performance tonight?

00:28Really good again.

00:30I'm enjoying a lot the way we're playing lately,

00:33not the second half against Fulham, but in general, I'm so pleased.

00:37So we conceded a few chances, of course we conceded goals,

00:42but the chances we conceded are, I would say, relevant lately,

00:47and we created a lot.

00:50The definition of the game was, again, 11 players in the 18-yard box,

00:55it's not easy, I know that people are a little bit impatient,

00:58but we have to be so patient, otherwise they make transitions,

01:01and they are so fast, so quick.

01:03I know the people, if I say it's not easy, I know.

01:05I saw the game against Harvick and Stuttgart,

01:08and I know how good a team they are, in many, many aspects.

01:13I didn't expect the defence to do that, but it happened.

01:16But the moment they opened a little bit, and we provoked, they come, they come,

01:20we were able to make a transition, especially with Mateusz there,

01:23with Erling, and Xabi as well, we were so fast in the transition,

01:26that's why the team decided to maybe set back,

01:28because otherwise we can punish them with Erling in the space,

01:31in behind is unstoppable, and understand the defender,

01:34but we are working to attack better and better and better,

01:37it's a question of being patient.

01:39Yeah, we scored four goals in Bratislava,

01:42unfortunately we could have scored much, much more,

01:44but five goals here against a team I wasn't expecting from me before the game.

01:49Yeah, we are there, still five games left,

01:51and the target is finished in the first eight,

01:55because it's a good advantage to not play in February,

02:00one no-cut stage, and focus in the Premier League,

02:04and yeah, I like the team we are playing,

02:07we are alive with the problems we have with many injuries,

02:09like many other teams of course,

02:11but I rely a lot on the players, and they prove me I'm right.

02:17James?

02:17Hi Pep, I just wanted your thoughts on Erling's goal, the first one,

02:22and also, do you think we're perhaps in a new era now,

02:26where the likes of him, Vinicius Jr, Kylian Mbappe,

02:29they're going to be dominating the Ballon d'Or?

02:34I don't know, from my point of view it's the only...

02:38I know maybe other players are concerned about that,

02:42I don't care one second about the Ballon d'Or, this kind of stuff,

02:46the important thing is he's happy, he's smiling,

02:48and I know it's not easy for him because they defend in the box,

02:52there's no space, three central defenders with him,

02:54two whole midfielders close to him,

02:56even the wingers close to the whole midfielders,

02:59literally there's not space,

03:01every crowd, they are hugging him and pushing him,

03:05so it's not easy, but I spoke many times with him,

03:09be patient, be positive, the ball is coming, the ball arrives,

03:13to score two goals, have two headers,

03:15it's really good to score more, two more,

03:17because Erling has this incredible capacity,

03:20he can touch 15 balls, 20 balls, but he has seven, eight chances,

03:24it's unbelievable, this talent that this guy has,

03:27and of course make a fantastic goal,

03:29quite similar to Dortmund years ago,

03:30with an incredible pass from Joao Cancelo,

03:33I don't know which one is more difficult, for me both,

03:37so, yeah, really good.

03:40Simon?

03:42Pep, what did you make of Mateus Nunes tonight,

03:45he was obviously very good against Wolves as well?

03:46Yeah, really good.

03:49Really good, you know when you score a goal,

03:51how happy all the teammates are,

03:54so he's an incredible beloved, honest beloved,

03:57he's a lovely guy, he has a specific quality,

03:59if you can run in transition, he's as fast as Erling,

04:05so it's unbelievable when he runs for 30, 40 metres,

04:08nobody can stop him, so he has a special quality that we don't have,

04:12that's why we need him, he can play in many, many roles,

04:15he's generous in the back, defensively and everything,

04:19the only problem, he has just one,

04:21his manager maybe doesn't give him the minutes he deserves,

04:26but when he's a nice guy and ready,

04:30he can always help us in the circumstances that we have now,

04:33just with 15 players, plus keepers available,

04:38so of course it's important to have him.

04:41Sam?

04:42Hi Pep, at Wolves on Sunday,

04:44you were talking about the solution to playing against teams that play really deep,

04:47and you said, well, be patient and run,

04:49you said what's the alternative, to stand with Ruben and Eddie and wait,

04:53but it seemed like when you went to 3-0 tonight,

04:55that's exactly what you were doing, you talked about provoking them earlier,

04:59was that something you thought, it's worth trying that?

05:02No, I don't want to try, but what would happen if we do that for the first minute?

05:07What would happen in the football?

05:10Maybe they'll press.

05:12I don't think so, maybe, OK, come, we'll see,

05:15but if they don't attack, I don't want to attack, what happens?

05:19In basketball you have 24 seconds,

05:22in tennis you have to do something, you have to put the ball in the net,

05:25but you're there and Ruben and Manuel stay there, OK, I don't attack.

05:30Pfft, what happens?

05:32So I don't know.

05:34But it worked tonight, you scored.

05:36Yeah, we scored when they were deep and we scored when they jumped,

05:40you know that?

05:41I absolutely don't misunderstand me,

05:44I'm not judging what the opponents want to do and what happens,

05:47but with 2-0, they don't want to come, why should I attack?

05:50OK, we won the game, we go there,

05:53but of course we are our fans and we have to attack,

05:56and the moment they attack, we attack and then we can run and always punish them,

06:00so that's why I understand sometimes you cannot do it,

06:02but the reality is that, in football, for the rules,

06:06one team can say, you know, 90 minutes in the ATR box,

06:11nothing, make a transition goal, oh, it's a masterclass.

06:14Master, master, genius, and wow, what a transition.

06:18No, you want an episodic action, one transition, one corner, or whatever.

06:24So I'm not judging, don't misunderstand me,

06:27but the reality is that, and I've said to the players,

06:29what they have to do is how we attack better against teams that defend so, so deep.

06:34And step by step, we are learning, and step by step,

06:38but there's just one thing we cannot forget, don't be impatient.

06:41I know the players of the team will cross us and shoot and whatever,

06:45but it's there, 18 players there,

06:48there's no space behind, no staying between the lines, just here, here,

06:52and when you cross, we have Erling Haaland, but the rest,

06:56Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva,

07:00you know, it's like my son, so it's difficult.

07:04We don't have Peter Crouch, you know that?

07:06Otherwise, we would use him more, but that is the reality.

07:10But we have to find a solution, and step by step, we are doing it.

07:13You have to sometimes attack quicker in certain moments of a half,

07:17when we're in the ball, don't look there and look here,

07:21but step by step, step by step, we are going to improve

07:26how we can attack these type of teams.

07:30Jack, when it comes to you.

07:35What has been your opinion on Savinho's performances?

07:39It looks like he's contributing quite a lot in the final third,

07:43but also defensively, he seems to have got it.

07:46Both wingers, Mateus and Savinho, play really, really good.

07:50I love when they run backwards, otherwise in this team we would not play.

07:55They know it, but it's his aggression, you know?

07:59It's a typical Brazilian goal, lose the ball, try again, try again.

08:04He's missing the final shoot, he had the chances to score,

08:09some keepers make a good save, but as much as he will not be obsessed with that,

08:14the goals will come, and when they come, they come quite often.

08:18But he's playing really good, he's a winger who can play on both sides,

08:21the second half against Walsh, as I said,

08:24go by line and crosses, crosses, crosses, left to left.

08:28A player on the right had the ability to go even by line with the right,

08:31make incredible balls inside from Gundo or Phil or Rico or Erling.

08:36So, yeah, for him to be just three months with us,

08:40his level is really, really, really high, really high.

08:43I had the feeling he didn't need much time to adapt, you know, to understand.

08:47I want to say something.

08:49It's thanks for the work from Mitchell and Girona has done it,

08:53so the way they play is quite similar to us,

08:56and I think many things they learned with Mitchell,

08:58and that's why I'm incredibly grateful and thankful for Girona and Mitchell,

09:03especially the team has done with him.

09:05Cam?

09:07To take you back to Erling's first goal,

09:10I looked at your reaction when the ball hit the net,

09:12and you turned and looked at your coaches,

09:14and you looked like you couldn't believe what you'd just seen.

09:17No, I didn't know how to score in the moment,

09:19because there was one player in front of me,

09:21and I didn't even know who to score.

09:23And I said, who to score, and I said, how?

09:25And they tell me in that way, and now I saw it on TV,

09:27but I didn't see it in the moment.

09:30In retrospect, in all your years, have you ever seen a goal like that?

09:34Yeah, against Dortmund.

09:36Against Dortmund has done it, quite similar, yeah.

09:40So it's no?

09:42I would say no.

09:44For a human being, I would say no.

09:47Let's take a couple of questions in chat, please, guys, just here.

09:49Good evening, coach.

09:51That Erling's goal reminds me of something Zlatan Ibrahimovic,

09:54and you know very well Zlatan.

09:56So can you compare them, because I think they are similar in some aspects.

10:00Yeah, yeah.

10:02His agility to do is quite similar, you're right.

10:09Good evening, coach.

10:10Before the game, you said that Sparta made a good impression on you.

10:16So is the impression still the same after the game?

10:18And is there any player that maybe caught your eye?

10:21They adapt.

10:23I saw the games against Salzburg and against Stuttgart,

10:26and they were so brave.

10:28I know for last season Stuttgart have been well-managed,

10:32a really, really good team.

10:34And they create a lot of problems for Stuttgart.

10:36And I said, wow, wow.

10:38In Stuttgart yesterday, we won in Turin against Juventus.

10:41So I know how good they are.

10:43But they adapt.

10:45I know sometimes it's not easy to play against us,

10:47for many aspects, we were so aggressive,

10:49and with the ball, we have an alternative,

10:52and they adapt, and I can understand completely.

10:54I have the same, same opinion.

10:56I'm really, really pleased today,

10:58when I said I was pleased, I know exactly.

11:00Your colleagues from England don't know Sparta Prague much,

11:04and I know it will be, ah, it's easy, easy.

11:06I know it's not.

11:08We have done many, many good things,

11:10because they have pace.

11:12The keeper is good with the long balls.

11:14The strike is so strong.

11:16They are so incredibly fast for the wingers.

11:18But, yeah, I think...

11:20I think one of the successes that we have

11:22is always respect a lot the teams,

11:24like the people say, I will be easy.

11:26No, no, you have to do it.

11:28You have to do it.

11:30And it's not easy.

11:32And now in the Champions League,

11:34look how many games they are,

11:36it's so precious that they are.

11:38So it's better to be calm, respect,

11:40analyse the opponents, and do what you have to do.

11:42And I'm really pleased for the way we have done it.

11:44OK?

11:46OK, good night.

11:48Safe trip back home.

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