Never one to hold back from a praiseworthy assessment of a respected rival who’s put up a valiant fight, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was again a class above when he talked about Newcastle United after his side emerged 1-0 winners at the Etihad on Saturday night.<\/p>\n
The best in the game with a wealth of talent \u2013 undoubtedly capable of beating any side on their day \u2013 under his control, Guardiola never lets the success go to his head. He is always respectful of the opposition in interviews and appears never to take anything for granted.<\/p>\n
After a testy 1-0 victory over Newcastle on Saturday, Guardiola spoke to the media and admitted that he had to change his side\u2019s style of play to cope with the new threat represented by the Newcastle side.<\/p>\n
Guardiola spoke highly of Eddie Howe\u2019s side saying: \u201cNewcastle is an exceptional team!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we give an open game they will destroy us. So we had to make a lot of control with a lot of passes, that\u2019s why I put a lot of players in the middle to have extra passes and in the right moment we will find the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
This subtle admission from Guardiola infers that the big sides have realized that Newcastle are a new clear and present danger with the way they mobilize themselves.<\/p>\n