EPL

Ederson lauds 'sometimes annoying' Guardiola

By Sports Desk October 12, 2024

Ederson says it is an honour to be a part of Pep Guardiola's Manchester City, though admitted the manager can be "sometimes annoying".

The goalkeeper joined City in June 2017 and has since kept 113 clean sheets in 257 Premier League appearances, more than any other goalkeeper in the competition since his debut.

He has won 15 major trophies with City, including six Premier Leagues, two FA Cups and a Champions League title, as well as the UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup under Guardiola. 

While on international duty with Brazil, Ederson attended an event for Children's Day and was asked if Guardiola was nice, annoying or angry by one child.

"You're going to get me in trouble," Ederson told ESPN Brasil. "He's all three.

"He's a nice guy, he's sometimes annoying, in the sense of [being] demanding, because he has to [be] demanding to a professional [player], and he's also angry when he has to be angry.

"So he has a mixture of all three. But he's a nice guy off the pitch, and he's a very, very demanding guy on it. And he's also a guy who gets angry like any other person, like any other coach, when things don't go well or when the team doesn't play well.

"Of course, we know that we're not going to be able to play 70 games at a brilliant level. Of course, in one game or another, there's going to be a dip."

Under Guardiola, City became the only English club in history to hold all five trophies – Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup, Super Cup and Club World Cup – in a calendar year (in 2023).

In the English top-flight, Guardiola has overseen 311 games since July 2016, winning 230 of those (D43 L38). He has a 73.95% win percentage in the competition and averages 2.36 points per game.

And Ederson believes the Spaniard, who has been named the Premier League manager of the season five times, has changed football in the competition.

"I've been able to play a big part in the project," he said. "You take everything Guardiola has built up with the group, with the squad and everything he's been able to reformulate practically.

"You see every Premier League game today, how the teams try to play more football, have more possession. It's completely different from when he arrived.

"So to be able to be part of this project and achieve everything I've achieved, I feel very honoured, it really is a childhood dream."

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