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'Chelsea are killers on the counter,' says Pep Guardiola, 'but I wouldn't want City to play that way'
The time to assess a team is “over a glass of wine”, Pep Guardiola said, but ahead of Manchester City’s potentially momentous meeting with Chelsea there was a clear-headed verdict from him on how much the fixture meant and the ideological differences between the two sides.
“It is a big chance to see what we are,” Guardiola declared. The Premier League leaders are taking on the reigning champions who will draw level with them on points if they win at Stamford Bridge but City can open up a six-point gap if they leave with an away victory.
Guardiola said he recognised similarities between his philosophy and Antonio Conte's and admired the Chelsea head coach's tactical sense and management. But he went on to explain that there was a significant difference - his insistence that his teams dominate possession had not wavered since “what I tried with Barcelona second team, in the fourth division”.
The City manager praised Chelsea for their “machine” like approach to football and their “killer” instinct in front of goal but confirmed it is not a tactical approach he wants to follow himself. It had a touch of Cavalier versus Roundhead.
"The best way to explain what we are at Manchester City is with a glass of wine in front of the TV and watch the team play,” Guardiola said. "When I see Conte it’s like a team that he has to defend compact, 10 players, and after use the counter-attack like a machine with Pedro, Willian, [Eden] Hazard, [Alvaro] Morata, [Diego] Costa in the past. When they can attack, they can attack.
“They've been strong since a long time ago, Chelsea. They are all tall and strong. They are a really good team. One of the best teams in Europe. It's a big chance to see what we are. It's a good test for us against the last champions of the Premier League.”
There is one curious statistic also that adds to Guardiola’s admiration – and frustration – with Chelsea. In seven matches against them the 46-year-old is yet to record a victory – apart from the Super Cup win in 2013 on penalties when he was Bayern Munich coach.
Guardiola added: “Especially what I like the most is they don't create a lot of chances. They shoot four times and score four goals against Tottenham [in the FA Cup semi-final]. When this happens it means a lot, it's a top team. They have that ability - they are killers when they have one chance - one goal. That's why they're a good team."
City’s inability to be “killers” last season was, Guardiola has stated, their biggest downfall as they failed to capitalise on the chances they created. A golf enthusiast, the Spaniard has privately likened it to constantly making the greens but then putting “bogey, bogey, bogey” instead of “birdie, birdie, birdie”.
And that became most apparent against Chelsea when the two sides met last December in what was probably the most consequential fixture of the campaign. The 3-1 defeat at the Etihad, in which Fernandinho and Sergio Agüero were sent off, hurt City and Guardiola and strengthened Chelsea.
“That game was a key point, we went four points down and a lot of things happened,” Guardiola said. “A lot of things affected the future. We didn't overcome it at that moment…Hopefully we can learn about that, we like to fight when we have troubles and show what we can do. We're in September, people say it's a perfect condition, in the Premier League and Champions League, but it's September, but what I want to see is how we react.”
It will also be instructive to see how Guardiola reacts to the injuries suffered by Agüero and Benjamin Mendy. Without Agüero will he abandon playing twin strikers and go with his natural instinct of just using Gabriel Jesus? Will he deploy Raheem Sterling more centrally – or not at all? And will he stick with a four-man defence against Chelsea who have shown flexibility under Conte to combat and stifle their strongest opponents? Chelsea did that, twice, last season against City and already this campaign Conte has thickened his midfield against Spurs and also this week at Atlético Madrid in a victory that was hailed by Guardiola as an important one for the Premier League.
With Morata and, behind him, Hazard Chelsea also have a burgeoning partnership which allows Conte to move away from the 3-4-3 formation which was so successful last season but which was eventually countered.
Chelsea are also depleted, not least with the suspension of David Luiz, but this feels more about how City and Guardiola react to adversity – and whether he is willing to adapt. "We want to become a big club, I've been at two amazing clubs in my life [Barcelona and Bayern Munich] … you have to overcome this situation,” Guardiola said.
“I'd like to play with Sergio but he's not there, no complaints. We'll go there and play the way we'd have done it with Sergio, Kompany, Mendy. We have to overcome these situations. The big clubs do it - they overcome the difficult situations.
“We've broken two pieces, how do we react? It's always difficult at Stamford Bridge, the last champions of the Premier League. Always complicated. How we react in that situation is what I want to see. If people are saying we can't do it now, we'll never reach what we want in the next five or six years.”