Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola dismisses 'intensity' of Premier League

The Premier League is often referred to in the press and by other managers as the most intense in the world, but Guardiola appeared bored of answering questions about it at a press conference ahead of the Champions League clash against Barcelona on Wednesday.

Asked about how easy it was preparing for the upcoming game against his former team given the intensity of the Premier League, Guardiola responded dismissively.

"I hear a lot of times about the intensity in the Premier League when none of you have been in La Liga or the Bundesliga to know how intense it is," he said.

"Here the problem is maybe there are more games, but the way they play in Germany for example is amazing."

Guardiola implied there was a lack of respect for European Leagues in the UK and said: "I think you have to have respect for the other leagues about how they play and the way they play."

On the team in which he played for 10 years and managed for four, Guardiola said: "Of course Barcelona is special in the way they play because it's a machine. They have three amazing players in front, they use an a amazing counter-attack, they have a good build up...They are a good team so when they win 4-0, they deserve to win 4-0.

"I think every league has it's specific points but especially it's the quality of the players that they make the difference.

"That's why [teams from] Spain have in the last six, seven, eight, nine years won, or reached the finals and semi-finals, of all the European competitions. It's because they play good."

He added: "Of course here there are more games to play [in the Premier League], but I think the intensity in Italy and other places is quite the same."

Guardiola's team Manchester City, who are currently top of the Premier League, will play Barcelona in the Champions League on Wednesday.