Pep Guardiola cites Bodø/Glimt-Sporting as example: Nobody... | OneFootball

Manchester City coach, Pep Guardiola, used Sporting’s example and their defeat against Bodø/Glimt in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 to reflect on the difficult week English clubs had in European competitions.

In the press conference previewing the Premier League match against West Ham United, coached by Nuno Espírito Santo, the Catalan manager spoke about the competitiveness of European football and rejected the idea that the Premier League has lost quality.

Guardiola recalled the various negative results for English clubs during the European week—including City’s 3-0 defeat to Real Madrid—to emphasize that the level of the other leagues is also very high.

“Before, no one doubted that we were the best league in the world, right? We qualified all our teams in the Europa League, we were the best, strong, we were doing well... After what happened midweek, now we’re not. I am quite convinced that we are an incredible league,” he said.

The coach then pointed directly to the example of Bodø/Glimt to explain that there are no longer any easy opponents in European football: “The Premier League organizes an incredible league, it’s fantastic, but in this competition, in one or two games, anything can happen, and that means that, even though we are good, in other leagues, they are good too. Now, no one doubts Bodø/Glimt, from Norway, right?”

Guardiola also highlighted the recent run of the Norwegian team, which has surprised several European powerhouses: “No one, right? They are a top team, win every game, beat Sporting 3-0 and people tell me they played magnificently. They beat us, Internazionale, Atlético de Madrid... Now, no one doubts them.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.