While Manchester City concludes their preparations for the new season, FlashScore spoke with their manager Pep Guardiola prior to the previous season match on Saturday evening against Palermo on the island of Sicily.
Guardiola presented himself to journalists with his usual mix of lucidity and irony, talking about football, but also about emotions and old acquaintances.
“Tomorrow will be a friendly who will be great for Pippo (Palermo manager Filippo Inzaghi), and also for us,” he started. “It is the last friendly we have. We have the Stadsvoetbalgroep, a relationship that is now slightly closer than in the past.”
“Personally, coming to Italy is always a joy, but to really get to know the reality of Palermo and Sicily, you have to live there or get on vacation here.
“Tomorrow morning we are in the hotel, maybe we will do something, but in the afternoon we prepare for the game. We spend the evening here for dinner, always a chance to eat well, and then on Sunday we will come back to England.”
The Catalan coach then thought about the status that his club has achieved: “We deserve to say so we had to say. We had a great, wonderful decade.
“We have won and come back to win, and that's why we continue to work. If we didn't do that, the coach would also have changed and the players too. So we have taken a long way and we are ready for the new season.”
“As a coach he has already done good things”
It is impossible not to talk about Inzaghi, his opponent on the field in his time as a player: “He was smart in the box: he had the feeling where the ball would go … The big strikers are those who guess the ball, because if you go there a second later, you don't have it.
“As a coach he has already done good things. His career is still young, so I definitely wish him the best.”
A passage also on Kevin De Bruyne, who moved to Napoli in the summer: “A bit strange, I have to say. But we all, the entire city family, we love him a lot.
“We wish him that this experience in Italy, in this country, with a very strong coach, one of the best ever, can be positive. I am sure he will learn a lot and do good things. I hope he, Michelle and his children have a great time in Italy, especially in Naples.”
Finally, a look at the atmosphere that is awaiting him at the 'Barbera' and a thought for Inzaghi's birthday: 'Yes, I know. We will definitely do something. I can't wait to see the fans.
“I know that the south is special. I hope they can have a good season and be able to go all the way with the dream – which Palermo has for sure – and which city football group has: be in the Serie A next year.”