Guardiola Opens Up on Staying at City, Patience, and a Derby Shrouded in Mystery

Pre-Derby Reflections

In a tense, cautious mood ahead of the Manchester derby, Pep Guardiola explained the backstage logic behind his long stay at City, while acknowledging the mystery surrounding Manchester United's new coach Michael Carrick and the tactics he might deploy tomorrow.

In the Friday press conference for the match, Guardiola spoke about the secret to his tenure: "The results, then the results. If you don't win, you're fired. We've won a lot, and that's why I'm here today. If we hadn't won, I would have been sacked long ago."

"There is no other secret, but we are more patient. In another club, maybe I wouldn't be here after last season. They were patient because of what we had achieved in the past. We went through three very bad months recently, and in any other club I might have been dismissed, but our history was good enough to keep me in the job."

Asked whether he wished the rivalry with United had been tougher in previous years, he responded: "It's how we see it now. I can't control what United did, and I don't know what happened there because I'm not part of their club."

Guardiola also refused to comment on reports linking City with Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi, simply saying, "No comment."

He admitted the defensive situation is tough: "Without John Stones, Ruben Dias, and Josko Gjardiol, we are in a difficult position, not for one game but for a while. Ruben will be back soon, Josko not yet, and we hope John returns soon."

Regarding United's approach under their new manager, Carrick: "When you don't have enough information about the opponent, you must focus on yourself and your players. We can take some ideas from what Carrick did with Middlesbrough or during his interim spell at United, but the tactics depend on the players; United's players tomorrow are different from Middlesbrough."

"I don't have a time-out after ten minutes to tell the players what Carrick intends to do, so it's better to focus on our own team."

Looking at the possible style United may adopt after the departure of Amorim and Carrick's appointment: "When you play five at the back and you fail, then four and fail, you return to five... You can play exceptionally well with either system. If changing the plan guaranteed success, everyone would be a coach; players perform best when the team operates as a complete unit."

Guardiola ended by discussing Antoine Simeone's early starts for City: "He has scored three goals. Imagine if he hadn't scored after two games—pundits would call it a disaster! Of course I want him to score as much as possible, but he signed a long-term contract, and he'll be judged on his entire career, not just two games."

Punchline time (in the style of a legendary humorist): If patience were a sport, Guardiola would have already won the Olympics. And if tactical tweaks were currency, City would be printing money while you’re still figuring out which formation to use.