Pep Guardiola is more relaxed than ever ahead of Man City's biggest challenges

"I'm a little bit upset with the Premier League because they put the game when Tiger Woods is back!"

Two days before a huge match against Premier League title rivals Liverpool, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola was talking about golf. Speaking to journalists ahead of a meeting dubbed by many - but not Guardiola nor opposite number Jurgen Klopp - as a potential title decider, Guardiola cut an extraordinarily relaxed figure.

His demeanour marked a significant departure from the stereotype assigned to Guardiola's management style: a maverick, a touchline-pounding, wildly-gesticulating genius cursed by his superior knowledge of the game and the inability of others to meet his intellectual level. Stereotypes are often wrong of course, but they do tend to start with at least a small kernel of truth. Guardiola is the same football obsessive he has always been; his preparation and tactical planning before games goes way and beyond what is considered normal for a professional football manager.

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It was recently reported that one night last month in the middle of the night, Guardiola got up and meticulously analysed clips of recent matches between Liverpool and Southampton. He has always been like that and he always will.

Yet during his time at Barcelona that intensity and obsession went into overdrive. Combined with the pressure of managing the Catalan giants, Guardiola was left burnt out and in need of a sabbatical.

"I'm more relaxed [now]," Pep said when asked how he deals with games games of the magnitude of the upcoming Liverpool tie. "The week before the Champions League final too. I suffer more in October [until] December