Cardiff City: Brian Barry-Murphy issues Pep Guardiola claim on eve of EFL Cup last 8 clash with Chelsea | OneFootball

The Bluebirds boss has been inspired by the Man City chief in his latest managerial role

Cardiff City head coach Brian Barry-Murphy has revealed the influence which Manchester City chief, Pep Guardiola, holds on his style and methods in South Wales.

The Irishman was appointed at the Cardiff City Stadium in June after the Bluebirds were relegated to League One for the first time since 2002 after a dismal campaign of Championship football.

Despite his current position in the Welsh capital representing just a second EFL managerial role in his coaching career thus far, Barry-Murphy has worked under some influential figures between the end of his spell at Rochdale and his current role with Cardiff, but none other than Guardiola are renowned worldwide when it comes to the tactical influence they have given the modern game.

It is an appointment which has clearly paid dividends for Vincent Tan as we head towards the hectic Christmas and New Year period, with the newly-relegated squad yet to succumb to the pressure which followed the high expectation levels placed on the club by supporters and those on the outside, despite the fact City have the second-youngest squad in League One when it comes to average age.

The 47-year-old has enjoyed a fine start to his tenure, with a dramatic 4-3 home victory against Doncaster Rovers at the Cardiff City Stadium on Saturday afternoon, courtesy of Joel Bagan's 99th-minute winner, ensuring that the South Wales club will remain top of the third tier standings on Christmas Day ahead of nearest challengers, newly-promoted Bradford City.

An accumulation of 41 points from 19 games thus far has also coincided with a strong run in the EFL Cup. And, after defeating Swindon Town, Cheltenham Town, Burnley and country rivals, Wrexham, Barry-Murphy's young chargers were rewarded with a home tie against Club World Cup winners, Chelsea.

Enzo Maresca's side travel across the M4 after a 2-0 home success over Everton which kept them fourth in the Premier League. Yet, in the build-up to Tuesday night's highly-anticipated first meeting of the two sides in over five years, the Cardiff boss has revealed how he remains inspired by Guardiola.

As previously mentioned, Barry-Murphy has enjoyed a rather intriguing career path to-date, which included overseeing the development of many young stars at the Etihad Stadium between July 2021 and July 2024, where he was the Citizens' Elite Development Squad manager.

Naturally, this role meant creating a pathway between the youth ranks and the first-team for those capable enough of catching Guardiola's eye.

Such names included Cole Palmer, who will not feature against the Bluebirds in midweek, with the Wythenshawe-born forward already making plenty of waves in his career thus far, which included scoring for England in the UEFA Euro 2024 final defeat to Spain in Berlin.

In the lead-up to Tuesday's game against the West London giants, Barry-Murphy revealed that he could never pass up the chance of working under the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss, who still influences his methods which have given Cardiff a strong shot at a first-time promotion back to the Championship.

"There were three major parts for me," he told Sky Sports. "First, the chance to work with someone I had been obsessed with for a long time in Pep Guardiola.

"From him I learned how important it is to have an obsessive focus every single day. In football there is a lot of outside noise, but the focus on the daily work leading up to the game was total. The players were aligned with that and I saw the results," the City boss explained.

"I also learned a huge amount from Lorenzo Buenaventura [the fitness coach at Man City], who gave me as much insight as Pep. Their training programme and how it brought the game model to life blew my mind.

"It was something I always wanted as a player and it has become an important influence on how we train here at Cardiff," Barry-Murphy added.

"Second, I had people above me who believed in my way of working and wanted to give me a test that would improve me.

"Third, the calibre of player in the dressing room meant I had to elevate my coaching. Working with players like Cole Palmer, Oscar Bobb and others meant I had to evolve and really test myself.

"That environment gave me the tools to become a better coach and fed my drive to improve every day."

Cardiff City's young squad should have no fear against Chelsea

Barry-Murphy will be under no illusions that Tuesday's clash provides the toughest opponents, on paper, his new side have faced thus far. However, that doesn't mean he or those players should approach the game with any fear.

The pressure is fully on Chelsea to progress to the semi-finals and potentially pick up a second major honour under Maresca, yet Cardiff certainly have numerous weapons of choice who could spring a surprise, such as Callum Robinson - who has previously been a thorn in the Blues' side - Yousef Salech, Cian Ashford, Alex Robertson and Ronan Kpakio.

It is also another opportunity for Welsh international, Dylan Lawlor, to impress on the mainstream stage amid interest from the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal.