Guardiola will change English football, says Xavi

Follow us on Google Discover

FC Barcelona legend Xavi has described Manchester City as a ‘big opportunity’ for his former coach

Guardiola will leave Bayern Munich for Manchester City in July

Xavi believes Pep Guardiola can change the mentality of English football when he arrives at Manchester City in the summer.

The former Barcelona wizard, who now plays for Al-Sadd in Qatar, spent four years under the stewardship of the highly sought after coach, winning a treble in 2009.

In his 18 years with the Catalans, Xavi won an incredible 28 major honours, and the Spanish World Cup winner is now rounding off his glittering career in Qatar.

Xavi with Samuel Eto’o during his time at Barcelona

Speaking in an interview with the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy in Doha, Xavi believes that Guardiola will not only have an impact on Manchester City but also English football in general.

“It is a big opportunity for him at Manchester City,” he said. “I think he will change the face of English football.

“If there is anyone capable of changing that mentality, it is Guardiola. It is a great opportunity but there will also be a lot of pressure, because everyone always expects a lot from Pep Guardiola. But he is without doubt one of the best coaches in the world at the moment.

“Guardiola thinks about football all the time, he is obsessive in his attention to detail. We still talk regularly and discuss football.”

Xavi under the watchful eye of former coach Guardiola

Manchester City announced the appointment of Pep Guardiola back in February, a move that many have seen as undermining the last season of current coach Manuel Pellegrini.

And with his arrival there is an expectation that he will overhaul City’s squad to suit his style, with Ilkay Gundogan expected to sign in the very near future, and Yaya Touré heading in the opposite direction.

However, Guardiola will no longer be the only new manager in Manchester this summer, with city rivals Manchester United set to appoint José Mourinho following the sacking of Louis van Gaal.

José Mourinho is Manchester United bound

Mourinho’s appointment would set up the mouth-watering prospect of a renewal of hostilities between the two coaches, who first locked horns during their spells at Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Should Mourinho be appointed as is expected, the two rivals will first meet again in late July, when the two Manchester clubs clash in the International Champions Cup in Beijing.