Guardiola:

Pep Guardiola is confident that FC Barcelona will win something again this season as he looked ahead to the encounter with Málaga at the weekend only three days after being held in the Champions League by VfB Stuttgart.
Just like last term the Blaugrana boss is again convinced that the quality of his players and their ability will guide the club to success once more. “I think that we will something, but we may not of course,” he said. “I just hope that the team is involved in both competitions until the end. Then we will see if we win something or not.”

“We know that we can do better”
“I cannot tell the players or the media that we are doing things well because we all know that we are not playing at the level that we want,” the Barça coach continued. “We know that we can play better because everyone has seen very recently just how good we can be. We can improve and we need to do so in order to be champions. I am convinced that we will do that and I am not angry. The responsibility is mine alone. The players want to improve and I am looking for that thing that I may have missed to lift them up to the level required.”

Good attitude

“My job means that if things do not go well then it is because I am not doing something well,” Guardiola stated. “I have the feeling that the squad want it and that they are striving for it. We will not hide even though we know things should be better. The players are keen and they suffer too when things do not go as they should. There is a reason why when things do not go well and I need to find that reason. I believe in what we do and in the players and I believe that we will turn the corner.”

No shouting

Guardiola was keen to deny that there were any harsh words said in the dressing room in Stuttgart in midweek. “I saw no nothing like that,” he said. “I wanted to tell the players how great they were and that they should have no doubts. I want to make it clear that when things go badly I never shout. I only do that when we win 4-0.”

Job commitment

“Coaches are committed to their roles all the time and there is always something to be concerned about,” he commented. “When things are going well I worry about maintaining the tension and when they go badly I try to work out why and to change things.”

Praising Málaga

Looking ahead to the visit of Málaga at the weekend Guardiola recognised how well the Andalucian outfit have been doing in recent weeks under coach Juan Ramón López Muñiz. “Málaga are on a great run of form,” he explained. “They have a very good team and a coach with great experience. They are a strong outfit and are full of confidence at the moment. They work hard and know what they are doing. We will need to be in very good form to beat them.”