Guardiola chooses a team he doesn’t want to face in the Champions League

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, (53 years old), has openly admitted that he would rather not face his former club Barcelona in the 2024-25 Champions League.

In the group stage draw, Manchester City will compete against Inter Milan, Paris Saint-Germain, Club Brugge, Juventus, Feyenoord, Sporting Lisbon, Sparta Prague, and Slovan Bratislava. On the other hand, Barcelona has been drawn with Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Atalanta, Benfica, Young Boys, Red Star Belgrade, Stade Brest, and Monaco.

This means that Manchester City and Barcelona will only potentially meet in the knockout stages. For Guardiola, such a match is something he "would rather avoid."

Guardiola: I don’t want to face Barcelona

In statements reported by the Spanish newspaper "Marca," Guardiola responded to a question about which team he’d prefer not to face in the Champions League: "A team I don’t want to face in the Champions League? Good question, probably Barcelona. My passion for them consumes me."

Guardiola spent much of his playing career at Barcelona before coaching the club's second team for one season (2007-08). He then took over the first team for four seasons (2008-12), leading them to incredible success. Notably, under his leadership, Barcelona claimed six major trophies in 2009, including La Liga, the Copa del Rey, the Spanish Super Cup, the Champions League, the European Super Cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup.

In total, Guardiola led Barcelona to 14 titles between 2008 and 2012, before moving on to manage Bayern Munich. He joined Manchester City in 2016 and has since guided the club to numerous triumphs, including six Premier League titles and City’s first-ever Champions League title.

Asked if this season could be his final one with Manchester City, Guardiola remarked, "That’s not true, not in the way it’s being suggested. I need time to think about it."

Guardiola’s contract with Manchester City runs until the end of the 2024-25 season, and rumors persist that he may seek a new professional challenge once his current tenure concludes.