PEP EXPECTS A FIRE FIGHT
It won’t be the passive Celtic of the Nou Camp tonight, says Guardiola
IT was Sir Alex Ferguson who best described the stupefying effect that trying to get the ball off Lionel Messi and Co can have on a team. ‘They get you on that carousel and make you dizzy with their passing,’ said the Manchester United boss before his team’s 2009 Champions League final with Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona.
Now in charge of Manchester City, Guardiola was a sympathetic observer as Celtic were thrashed 7-0 by Barca last month. The spooked visitors climbed off the Nou Camp carousel looking like they had been trapped in a house of horrors.
Their nightmare performance was light years away from what Guardiola witnessed 72 hours earlier as Celtic Park rocked to a 5-1 demolition of Rangers.
And the City boss is certain that the intensity of that Old Firm occasion — rather than the passivity on display in Catalonia — is what awaits his team when they face Brendan Rodgers’ men tonight.
‘I saw how intense the game was when Celtic played Rangers recently,’ said Guardiola last night.
‘It was completely different from in Barcelona when they were waiting and being passive.
‘The Rangers game was so aggressive with high pressing. And that is the game I am expecting from Celtic here.
‘I agree with what Brendan Rodgers said before that many teams suffer what happened to Celtic in Barcelona.
‘I definitely know what it means when Barcelona start quickly. Then Celtic missed a penalty (at 1-0 down) and soon it’s 2-0 then 3-0. Barcelona can score goals in five minutes.
‘Mentally, perhaps, the players were a little bit absent with everything that happened.
‘But this is Celtic Park and it will be completely different.
‘That Barcelona game was two weeks ago. Celtic have forgotten that. Football players, when you win, are happy but then they focus on the next game. And when they lose, it is the same situation.
‘So if the result had been better in Barcelona for Celtic, it would still be the same situation — focusing on the next game.’
This is Guardiola’s first trip to Scotland competitively, although he oversaw a Barca training camp at St Andrews in 2008, which featured a lot of golf as well as 5-1 and 6-0 friendly wins against Dundee United and Hibs.
On Barcelona’s last two trips to Celtic Park, they were managed by the late Tito Vilanova — Guardiola’s former right-hand man at the Nou Camp — and then Tata Martino.
But the City boss has long been regaled with tales about what it is like to play at Parkhead.
Messi once described it as having the finest atmosphere in Europe while Xavi and Andres Iniesta offered similar praise.
But Guardiola is tempering his excitement ahead of experiencing it for himself, and is wary of Celtic’s strong home record in Europe.
Not least back in November 2012 when Tony Watt’s famous winner against Barca was a shot heard around the world.
For that reason, despite having a squad worth £400million more than Celtic, Guardiola refused to declare any team favourite tonight.
‘This is my first time here in Glasgow to play Celtic,’ he said.
‘Many people have spoken to me about the atmosphere and I am looking forward to the experience.
‘I’ve spoken to players who played here and others at Bayern Munich who played here.
‘They told me of a special stadium, of the atmosphere with the fans and the way Celtic play. So I have heard many things about Celtic Park.
‘I also know their results and how strong Celtic are here. They have only lost two or three games here in the last 30 years.
‘The last two times Barcelona were here, they won one and lost one.
‘So this is a big challenge for Manchester City to see what our level is in Europe, away from home. This is just our second group game and anything can happen.
‘We will try to play the game the way we want to play and we will try to control it.
‘But the game starts with the scoreline 0-0 when the referee first whistles. We will see from there until the end of the game who is the favourite.’
Guardiola has hit the ground running since arriving at the Etihad from Bayern Munich in the summer.
City have 10 consecutive wins and an 11th tonight would match the best start to a season by an English club: Tottenham in 1960-61.
He will be without injured captain Vincent Kompany and £52m midfielder Kevin De Bruyne tonight and for the next three weeks.
But Guardiola can count upon Sergio Aguero, who has scored 11 goals in six games, while he has restored Raheem Sterling to the exciting footballer who broke through under Rodgers at Liverpool.
Declaring himself unconcerned about setting records, the City coach is hoping for another three points before heading to Borussia Monchengladbach and then an emotional return to the Nou Camp on October 19.
‘In the future, another team will win 12, 13 and 14 games in a row,’ he shrugged.
‘What I want to do is play well. We have done many things really well recently but there are still aspects we can improve on.
‘The special thing for a coach is seeing a team get better. Winning helps your development and the way you play.
‘We had a good win over Borussia Monchengladbach in our first game but this Champions League group is so tough.
‘Normally, when you want to go through, you have to win against the team that comes from the fourth pot.
‘But we were unlucky that was Celtic of Glasgow, who are a classic team.
‘We want to play a good game at Celtic Park and it would be a big step forward if we can win here.’