Pep Talk: “He is so clever, he makes the right movements.....”

Pep had his usual press conference and hit on a variety of topics.

Let’s see what the head man had for us this week.

Pep on Eric Garcia-

“Busquets [was like that] when he was young,” the Catalan said when asked if Garcia reminds him of any other player he’s worked with.

“When I was in the second team at Barcelona and the first team, he was so curious. In that age, at 17 or 18-years-old, there are not many.

“But in the squad, there are people who love to understand the tactics and guys who don’t like to talk about that. That doesn’t mean you’re good or bad.

“Eric is a guy who likes to know the reason why. He is a guy who, if he makes a mistake, he quickly understands why.

“He will continue to make mistakes, of course, but Eric is stable.”

“He’s just 18-years-old and has lots to learn, but he is so clever,” added Guardiola. “Everything you say to him, he understands immediately.

“Eric is a young player who is always stable. That’s important, especially in this position.

“A striker is up and down because there is more talent, more creativity. They can wake up and think they’ll express everything, but defenders have to be stable and Eric is like this.

“He will be better at 22, or 25 or 27, especially if he plays games.

“He will not be a guy, that good games or nice words in the media will change his perspective on who he is or how he has to behave.”

“I heard something when he was in the Barcelona academy, that he was a captain in all the teams,” explained the boss.

“He arrived here and immediately he was captain. That means he settled incredibly well with the team. He is an incredibly lovely guy, very well educated and always knows exactly what he has to do.

“He doesn’t ever over-exaggerate in his acts or be shy in the other. He is always calm. He is focused all the time.”

Pep on Laporte-

“He trained with the team for 10, 15 minutes, the rest individually and he is getting better,”

“He feels good and in the next few weeks he will complete all training sessions for us.”

“I don’t know (when he will return). He will dictate. How he feels. He was four months out,” Guardiola added.

“Everything needs a process, but it’s important he didn’t make a step back. (It’s) the same with Leroy and that is really good. Great from the physios and the guys who work with him.”

Pep on Ederson and Otamendi-

“Ederson was sick (against Everton). He came to the game bad,” Pep added.

“Today he (Ederson) trained and he feels better.

“Nico feels better too. Tomorrow he won’t play but in the next days he will be in the squad again. “

Pep on Port Vale-

“They will be more than welcome… it’s nice,” Guardiola added.

“That’s why this country is the best. All the competitions and all the leagues, they support their own clubs.

“This afternoon I will see more games of them. Then we will decide how we play.”

Pep on John Stones-

“He’s fit for tomorrow,” said Guardiola at his pre-match press conference.

“Step by step, he is getting better. He’s not still top but he’s getting better. He’s good to get minutes for tomorrow.”

That was all for Pep. Thoughts?