Rio Ferdinand has defended Pep Guardiola after his reputation for overthinking was questioned once again.
With Manchester City heading into a pivotal couple of weeks, their manager has come under the spotlight as they look to win a memorable treble. The Blues will be fighting on all three remaining fronts over the next four games, with huge games against Liverpool as well as their Champions League quarter-final against Atletico Madrid.
Among their treble hopes, they’ll be aiming for a first European crown this season, having failed to deliver on their tag of favourites in previous seasons. In particular, they’ll be looking to avenge their defeat in last year’s final to Chelsea.
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Guardiola has received some flak for City's European exits over the years, with the City boss accused of overthinking his selections and tactics. The Catalan joked about his reputation earlier this week as he suggested he would play with 12 men against Atletico.
"In the Champions League I always overthink," he said. "I always create new tactics and ideas, and tomorrow you will see a new one. I overthink a lot, that's why I have very good results in the Champions League. I love it. It would be boring if I always played the same way.”
Guardiola has been backed by Ferdinand following his jovial comments on the topic. The former Manchester United defender insists the City boss shouldn’t be criticised, even if he gets some of his decisions wrong.
“That’s why we love him, we love him because when he puts a team out there are questions all the time," Ferdinand told BT Sport. ‘Who’s going to be there? Who’s going to adopt this side of the pitch?’
“They’re the reasons we love him, he thinks outside the box, but then you can’t go and hammer him because ‘he got that decision wrong because he was experimenting or experimenting something different’. 99 per cent of the time, it makes him different but separates him being world-class. He gets it right most of the time.”
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