Guardiola: I Bear the Burden of Proving Myself

Pep Guardiola, the manager of Premier League champions Manchester City, said that he bears the responsibility of proving he can steer the team back on track after six winless matches, with one of the biggest challenges of the season coming up at Liverpool’s Anfield on Sunday.

A loss at Anfield on Sunday would see Guardiola’s men fall 11 points behind the leaders in the title race, but the Spanish coach said he was thinking about the bigger picture rather than the potential consequences of just one match.

Guardiola, who recently extended his contract with City for two more years, said: “Of course, I think about what I can do to help them (the players), but in my long career as both a player and coach, I have gone through situations like this. When you live through them, you have to accept them and face them. No complaints, no blaming, no pointing to numbers, or avoiding responsibility. If you don’t win, you’ll be in trouble, I understand that.”

He added in a four-minute response: “The moment I feel that I am not positive for the club, another (coach) will come, but I want the opportunity to try and rebuild the team in every aspect, starting now and continuing until the end of this season and the following seasons. I ask for this challenge and this opportunity to do that. I know what we need and what we have to do. We don’t have the same consistency we had before, but which team in the world has been consistent for 10 years? Tell me one. There’s none – it doesn’t even exist in the NBA or tennis or golf. This shows how much we are athletes and competitors. It’s easier when you have 10 or 12 consecutive matches, and every player is ready and at their best. Now, I have to prove myself and find a solution and a way to achieve that, and I try every day.”