Ferocious work ethic remains but Guardiola has mellowed

CITY are a few hours away from taking on Real Madrid in the semi-final of the Champions League when Marti Perarnau’s phone pings.

- SIMON BAJKOWSKI

The journalist sees the message flash up but can’t quite believe it.

It’s not that it’s unusual for Pep Guardiola to be contacting him – the two speak regularly – but it is far less normal for him to be doing it around any game, let alone a game of this magnitude.

That, Perarnau believes, is the biggest change that he has seen in a man who he has now written three books about over the course of his career. A series that started with Pep Confidential, exploring Guardiola’s first year at Bayern Munich, has now reached The Pep Revolution, detailing seven years at Manchester City.

Guardiola’s ferocious work ethic remains but he has mellowed and learned to let go of the intensity at times in order to avoid him burning out.

The City manager’s stomach may still be so full of nerves on a matchday that it doesn’t appreciate much food, but he now knows that he doesn’t have to push himself or every player to the edge all the time.

“I think it’s the main change of Pep,” Perarnau tells M.E.N. Sport.

He explains that, more than tactical or other questions, this slightly more relaxed way of competing, particularly during the matches, is the most important change in Pep’s methodology.