Pep Guardiola tells Mauricio Pochettino: You can’t ‘copy and paste’ my coaching style
'Copy me and you're making a big mistake', Manchester City's unbeaten boss warns Spurs rival and rest of the Prem
PEP GUARDIOLA says it is impossible to “copy and paste” his coaching style.
The Manchester City manager’s tactics have led to a new breed of bosses — and Sunday's opponent Mauricio Pochettino has been compared to the Spaniard.
Others across Europe have tried to match his hard-pressing style but the Spaniard says it is wrong to try to replicate him.
Guardiola said: “All I can say is that they want to copy a guy who wins and that is a big mistake.
“Some coaches invite me to see their training because they are having problems.
“I say to them ‘be yourself’. If you like someone that is OK, but remember they also lose games so that is a big mistake. It is not like a computer where you can copy and paste, you have to think.
“I felt the same in my past with coaches. I felt I liked something and I wanted to do that.
“My principle is that nothing will change. I have to believe with every part of my body in what I believe.
“When I go to the big stadiums I feel the best way to win is to prepare as much as possible.
“When I lose I am sad and disappointed, but do I want to change the way I play? No way – it is impossible.”
So far this season there has not been too much disappointment. Guardiola was pleased despite City’s draw at Celtic in midweek in the Champions League ending their 100 per cent record.
But they are yet to drop a point in the Prem ahead of their trip to Spurs today.
The Spaniard says he is not here to teach the Premier League how to play football, no matter how impressive he has been.
He said: “I want to give my influence to my players. I want to convince them on the pitch. But not for the sake of creating new things in English football.
“I didn’t come here just to change things. I want to change my players and when I ask them to play in a certain position, there is a reason why — not because I just feel like it.
“I am not a guy here to make inventions and after that lose the game. When I make a decision, the players know the reason why.”
The test at White Hart Lane could be City’s toughest yet, against a team that beat them twice last season.
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And Guardiola will be renewing rivalries with Poch, who played alongside City full-back Pablo Zabaleta at Espanyol.
Zabaleta, 31, said: “It was my first season at Espanyol, I was 20 years old, it was his last season as a player, 35, and I knew he would be a manager, 100 per cent.
“He took Espanyol, his first team to manage, when they were in the relegation zone which is not easy for any manager.
“He took the team out to the middle of the table.
“He did well at Southampton and now at Spurs, particularly developing young players which is very good.”
The Argentine can see the similarities between his fellow countryman and Guardiola. He said: “They like attacking teams, to be very intense and to also play out from the back. They have a similar style of play.”
The two bosses know each other from their playing days when the clubs were fighting for bragging rights in Barcelona, with centre-half Poch at Espanyol and midfielder Pep at Barca.
Guardiola said of Poch: “He was really tough. Barcelona against Espanyol is a derby. It was difficult, for the coaches and the players.
“When they created problems for us, then I tried to understand what they did.
“And I learned. I used for the future many things that I liked. That’s why I am a coach. I’ve said that many times. It’s about the game, discovering the secrets of the game. When things are bad, how can we improve tactically? That is what I like to do as a coach.”
Pep did not to expect City to come flying out the traps like they have this season, but still sees room for improvement. He said: “The level of success so far has surprised me. I said in the press conference that the results are a result of the enthusiasm of the players.
“After three or four games and we won at Old Trafford, it is not enough. That is not enough to win the Premier League. We are in a good way, but it is not enough.
“The fact we won six games in a row does not mean it is easy. Before I came here, I was told the Premier League was the toughest in the world, everyone can beat everyone.
“Now I accept it. It is not easy, it is so difficult. I want to give credit to my players.”
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