Lewandowski on Guardiola, Ancelotti and Klopp – ‘He changed, he realised that…’

Barcelona forward Robert Lewandowski has had an interview with Rio Ferdinand as part of the former England international's series, in which he revealed a lot about his career and some of the iconic figures within it. Lewandowski has also noticed a change in Pep Guardiola in recent years, which he believes has helped the Manchester City coach.

Guardiola enjoyed four years of Barcelona's most successful era in history before taking a year-long sabbatical and joining Bayern Munich. There he met an established Lewandowski as one of the best number nines in the world, and his style initially clashed.

“As a person he was difficult for the players because he was so brilliant with football tactics at the time that he thought: if they follow me, they will win. In later times I have seen that he has changed.”

“I think he realized that if he is more human and open, sometimes it can help him more than tactics.”

“I understand when you play against a team that doesn't have big chances [to beat you]but when you play against a big party. Tactics are important, I don't want to say that it isn't, but in my opinion several things can be decisive between winning and losing at this level.”

After Guardiola, Bayern went in a different direction, with current Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. The latter is praised for precisely that reason: its human quality.

“Ancelotti is like a father or an uncle. He can come to you, he can say why aren't you happy, he can talk about anything. You know Klopp, a great guy, he can talk to you and he knows when to be tougher, and when to be more like a friend.

“From the first training [with Guardiola]I was very impressed, he was very focused on details during training. Things I had never thought about, but even the rondos for him, the practice was so important, while I thought we were just playing.”

“Sometimes the tactics are too much, sometimes you need the individual.”

The one who changed his career was ex-Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp. Lewandowski made his leap to the elite with a swashbuckling Dortmund side sparked by Klopp. However, when the Polish striker arrived, it was Klopp's close personal treatment that prompted it.

“I lost my father at the age of 16, so I was very closed off. I went to talk to him and we talked for an hour and a half. I didn't understand everything because I was only recently in Germany, but it wasn't so important what was being talked about, but that he was talking to me like that.”

“After two days we went and won 4-0, I scored a hat-trick and made the assist, and I thought: what could have changed so much? But at the time it may have been my personal situation, but it stirred something in me. I needed that emotionally at the time, these conversations changed their careers.”