Pep Guardiola determined to win over playing 'beautiful football'

Pep Guardiola insists he does not want his teams to play beautiful football, he just wants to win.

The Manchester City boss is famed for the stunning way in which his side’s play but he is adamant he is only bothered about winning.

Though he admits his side’s style of play can be ‘attractive’ to those lucky enough to witness it, Guardiola says that while it is important for players to express themselves, the main priority has to be to win the game.

Speaking in ‘KILLING THE GAME: The inside story behind the transformation of Manchester City’ by Daniel Slack-Smith, Guardiola said: “No, no, I want to win,” as reported by the Mail on Sunday.

“That phrase, “beautiful football”, I don’t use that. Never. So, I want to win but from my experience the best way, and the way I believe brings us closest to winning, is the way we play.

“We want to express ourselves and sometimes when it happens it is attractive for the people that are watching, but to play in that way you need talented players. Without that, it’s not possible to achieve what we achieved. So, we need quality, but what I want is to win.”