Pep Guardiola admitted that he had been inspired by people even outside of football.
Guardiola is one of the greatest football managers of all time, having won major trophies with Manchester City, Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
As well as football, Guardiola is also a big tennis fan and has been spotted watching matches at both Wimbledon and the US Open in the past.
As his compatriot Rafael Nadal was gearing up to retire from tennis last year, Guardiola revealed that he had taken something from ‘the big three’ on to the football pitch.
What Pep Guardiola said he admired about ‘The Big Three’
Nadal announced that he would be retiring from tennis at the Davis Cup last year, which Guardiola was asked about when speaking to Sky Sports.
In this interview, Guardiola revealed that he admired Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, and had tried to pick up on their mental strength that enabled them to dominate for so long.
“I think it happened because he saw that he cannot be or compete in the level that he had been for two decades, but I admire all of them, all three,” Guardiola said in October last year.
“I admire the consistency of ‘The Big Three’ every single season being there and never giving up, coming back from the setbacks.
“I admire all of them, so for me they are three geniuses. I tried to learn a lot from their body language, how they behave in the bad moments, how strong they are mentally, and of course the talent and skill. I think all three will be missed – but still Novak Djokovic can enjoy it – but the three will be missed.”
What Pep Guardiola said Novak Djokovic’s Olympic victory showed
Djokovic won an elusive Olympic gold medal at the Paris Games last year after beating Carlos Alcaraz in the final.
When speaking about this in a separate interview last year, Guardiola claimed that Djokovic’s eagerness to win Olympic gold showed just how ‘magnificent’ the Games are.
“You have to be so proud about Serbia,” Djokovic told Arena Sport TV last year. “Listen, I don’t talk about Djokovic [his greatness] – that is difficult to say. You know, alongside [Rafael] Nadal and Djokovic, what they have done is amazing. And Djokovic is still there.
“The mentality that he played [in] the final against Alcaraz, that’s the reason why the Olympic Games is something magnificent.”
Despite finally winning that gold medal, Djokovic has since spoken about also wanting to play at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028, when he would be 41 years old.
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