Guardiola: 'We need 10 years to be like United'
Guardiola says Man City need time to build a special identity
| WEST HAM | MAN CITY |
His comments will not endear him to the Manchester City faithful.
Pep Guardiola was so grumpy after City's 2-1 win over Burnley on Monday that he hinted that the end of his managerial career was approaching.
Now the Spaniard has gone one step further, comparing his current club unfavourably to their arch-rivals Manchester United.
"We don't have the history with this shirt, of Barcelona, Juventus, (Bayern) Munich or Manchester United. Not their titles," said Guardiola, according to the Daily Mirror.
"It's about being in Europe, and over the next decade to be there (in the Champions League) every year.
"That's more important to this club than winning one title, believe me.
"We have to convince people at this amazing club that they are good. They are good. And the fans as well.
"They have to believe they are good, the club are good, the players are good."
Midfielder Yaya Toure has challenged the Citizens to put a smile back on Guardiola's face with a dominant display in tomorrow morning's (Singapore time) FA Cup third-round clash at West Ham United.
The Ivory Coast star, back in favour after clashing with the Spaniard earlier this season, believes City must play with more passion at critical moments.
"At the moment, we are not in our best form, but we have to be able to deliver," Toure said.
"City have always been a team that fights to the end to win a trophy and, at the moment, we are not happy with our position in the league. We have to fight.
"We are starting the second half of the season now and I think we will have to be almost perfect.
"We'll have to win all the games when we play the top four.
"The lads, the fans, the manager, we all understand that and we will try to do our best to get there."
Guardiola's first taste of the FA Cup comes at the London Stadium, where inconsistent West Ham will hope to bounce back from successive league defeats by Leicester City and Man United.
Hammers goalkeeper Darren Randolph is confident his team's gritty effort against United following Sofiane Feghouli's controversial red card, which has since been rescinded, offers hope.
"We battled on for most of the game with 10 men, still creating chances, so we take confidence from that," Randolph said. - WIRE SERVICES
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