Pep on Man City's tactical evolution: I get bored

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said boredom has helped inspire him to develop new tactical ideas as he bids to win a fifth straight Premier League crown.

Guardiola, 53, began his ninth season at City last Sunday with a comfortable 2-0 win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. He said his evolution comes from restlessness, but also from rivals reacting to his ideas.

Asked why he has employed various systems throughout his time at City and at Barcelona and Bayern Munich prior, Guardiola told ESPN Brasil: “It’s because otherwise I get bored. Always doing the same thing for eight years would be very boring. That’s the first thing.

“And secondly, when you do something and it goes well, they [opponents] watch you and create an antidote. If you go too inside, they close in. If we open up the field too much, they’ll open it up more.

“Anything we do and they respond to us, we have to respond again. The third reason is the players we have. What specific qualities they have and when they adapt best to the way you want to play.”

The Catalan coach added that he never thought he would stay with the reigning champions for this long amid reports that he is considering leaving at the end of his contract, which expires after this season.

“Not in my wildest dreams,” Guardiola said when asked about the length of his tenure. “If we hadn’t won, we wouldn’t be here, it would have changed.”

City’s Premier League campaign continues against Ipswich Town on Saturday.