Guardiola wary of Malaga threat

Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona are in the hunt for more records as they take on Malaga in La Liga on Sunday.

The Catalan giants will set a new club record of 28 games unbeaten if they avoid defeat at the Camp Nou, surpassing a mark that has stood for 37 years.

Standing between Guardiola’s team and history are Malaga, who have become Spain’s third-highest spending team since Qatari investor Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Thani took over the club in June.

Managed by former Real Madrid and Villarreal manager Manuel Pellegrini, Malaga have made eight new signings in the January transfer window and there are rumours of more new arrivals.

And Guardiola believes that Pellegrini’s coaching pedigree, coupled with acquisitions such as Julio Baptista and Martin Demichelis, provide a stern challenge for his side to overcome.

“We have already seen over the past few games what Pellegrini’s style is. He created problems for Barcelona with Villarreal, and last year he had a fantastic league season with Madrid,” Guardiola said.

“We already know how his teams play. They play well, they use their wide players to help the attackers. Pellegrini’s Villarreal offered a lot, and they influenced our football a lot.”

“Demichelis is a fantastic player, with experience in Argentina and in Bayern Munich. We all know Baptista from Real Madrid, Roma and Sevilla. He is a very powerful player.”

“Then they have the Pellegrini defence, which is always strong,” he added.