Guardiola: "When I saw Messi I knew that we would win everything"

Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola is the latest special guest on 'Parlem de futbol' de 'LaTdt' on Catalunya Ràdio. In the interview, as well as speaking about life in England, he looks back on his time in Barcelona, where he was in charge of the club's most successful ever spell. 

Even before arrived on the bench at Camp Nou, he had already been told that there was "a kid in the academy who was exceptionally good." That was, of course, Lionel Messi. He is now the best player in the world but at that time he was, as Guardiola says "small and shy, I asked myself if he was the player I'd been told about. But facts quickly spoke for themselves and, after a formidable preseason, Pep was certain: "I thought that with him we would win everything." And they did. 

The interview also speaks about what his time in charge of Barça meant for him, something which Guardiola remembers with a lot of affection: "Between games, there wasn't much time to enjoy it, but there was enjoyment in the process of the construction of the team." A process that led to one of the best teams in the history of the game, where "the changes that we made worked, everything flowed." 

They were friends and teammates: "We went out to dinner together, it was a group that knew how to stick together in difficult moments. But (for me) the responsibility of leading a team like Barça doesn't allow you to enjoy it for a moment."  

And why did he leave after four years? "It was a natural process, in life there's a moment when things end. We all learned a lot from each other and there wasn't a bad feeling, it was natural."