Guardiola quashes doubts over coaching abilities

After a poor debut as Barcelona coach which seemed to confirm concerns over his lack of experience, Josep Guardiola has turned the Spanish giants into a goal-scoring machine that is feared both at home and across Europe.

Former Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster went so far as to say that “it is not possible” to defeat Barcelona when the two sides meet on Saturday, a comment which likely contributed to his replacement on Tuesday by former Tottenham boss Juande Ramos.

Barcelona's first league match under Guardiola in August ended with an embarrassing 1-0 defeat to promoted Numancia but the club then went on to an undefeated streak of 20 matches to move to the top of the league and secure advancement to the Champions League knockout stage.

“I can't complain. I don't like losing. We made an effort and did enough not to lose, we played well,” he said after his side's unbeaten run came to an end with a 3-2 Champion League defeat by FC Shakhtar Donetsk at home on Tuesday.

In interviews players say Guardiola, 37, stresses a harder work ethic than his predecessor Frank Rijkaard who was sacked at the end of the last season, the club's second straight season without a major trophy.

“When I was at Arsenal I didn't have to run like I run now. Sometimes you have to work for the team and not just for yourself,” Barcelona's French striker Thierry Henry said last week.

A former Barcelona team captain, Guardiola won six league titles in 11 seasons as a midfielder with Barcelona but has never held a senior coaching position before.

He was managing Barcelona's reserve team when he was picked to replace Frank Rijkaard.

Shortly after taking over, he announced that three major stars with a history of discipline problems — Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o and Deco — were not part of his plans.

Of the three only Eto'o remained at the club but the Cameroonian international striker has so far avoided making the verbal outbursts which often made headlines last season and appears much more efficient on the pitch.

Guardiola slaps fine ranging from 500 euros (660 dollars) to 6,000 euros for lateness or a missed curfew and has prohibited players from using cell phones or MP3 players when on official Barcelona duty, sports daily El Mundo Deportivo reported last month.

He recently reminded players what he expects from them: “effort, ambition, dedication and hard work”.

“It doesn't matter who plays, he must give his all. Without that, we would not be where we are,” he said.

Barcelona finished in third place in the Spanish league last season, 18 points behind champion Real Madrid — its worst showing in five years — and Guardiola says the success of the squad this season was unexpected.

“I am the first to be surprised. We score many goals and we concede few goals. We feel solid, we have determined players, but it is December 7 and there is a long road ahead,” he said after Barcelona's 4-0 league win over Valencia on Sunday.

“We are going to experience bad moments and I hope the fans will help us then because we play for them, not for us,” he added.