Despite reports claiming the contrary, Pep Guardiola has reiterated his desire for Messi to end his career at Barcelona. After working together for over four years at Barcelona, the coach believes that the Catalan club is Messi's home. "Messi will finish his career at Barcelona, that is what I desire deeply," he said. "I want him to be there from the beginning to the end." There is a short gap between the top four teams in the Premier League, and Guardiola says it is anybody's title at this stage. "There are more teams that can win the title but we knew that before coming here," he said. "The Premier League will be decided in the last 8-10 days. There are many candidates. "We are where we want to be with Europe, but we need to improve. There are many games and sometimes it shows. If we could, we would take a whole week to train, but we cannot, so we always need to be ready."
On paper, a tie against Burnley is a favourable weekend fixture to play after midweek Champions League action, but the City coach is not underestimating Sean Dyche's side. "We cannot forget that they won against Liverpool and drew at Old Trafford," he said. "What they do, they do very well. "Yes, they lost 4-0 against West Brom the other day, but that forces them to change their attitude this weekend. In terms of intensity, they are sure to be better and fresher than us." Further injury problems to Vincent Kompany will not have pleased Guardiola, but he believes the side has plenty of defensive reinforcements. "Yaya Toure can play in many positions, but we also have other players who can play there," he said. "Fernandinho and Sagna can play centrally, but right now, in my mind, Yaya Toure should play in more offensive positions." Guardiola had a final word for the recently retired Steven Gerrard. "I want to congratulate him on his career. It was a treat to watch him play. Carrick, Scholes, Lampard, Ferdinand ... That was a unique generation for English football."
Sitting third in the Premier League, City travel to Turf Moor on Saturday afternoon and will hope to seal three points to keep their title bid on course.A spat over the airwaves between Xavi and Ronaldo has resulted in a variety of mudslinging, but the Manchester City coach is calm and assured as to who the world's best player currently is. "The best player in the Champions League is [Lionel] Messi," stated the Spaniard to the assembled press, "no one is better than him." Scoring several vital goals for Barcelona on their way to two Champions League titles under Guardiola, Messi has at times played his best football under Guardiola, who in turn fondly remembers those triumphs. "It was a pleasure to coach Barcelona and Bayern Munich far into the Champions League," added the former midfielder, "but now at Manchester City we have our own story. "I'm not a romantic, I want to win games and I think the best way to win games is mine, which is something I try to convince my players."
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