Guardiola: 'Spurs play how Mauricio wants'

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola believes we are a "quality" side, regardless of the formation we play.

We've enjoyed success with a three-at-the-back shape in the last few matches but, as seen so many times during the reign of Mauricio Pochettino, we've also excelled in a 4-2-3-1 set-up.

Looking ahead to Saturday's clash between the sides at the Etihad Stadium, Guardiola, who knows Mauricio well from the duo's time in Spain, has lavished praise on our squad for the way they operate and adapt on the pitch.

"They have the quality with three or four at the back, they have the perfect movements from the back with the goalkeeper," said the highly-rated former Barcelona and Bayern Munich chief.

"They play at the right tempo, they are a good team and they are playing really good. Their positional game is quite similar to Chelsea but they have some different movements. All of them know where the players are. To create that you need time – and quality of course."

Asked about our season so far, which currently has us second in the Premier League standings and enjoying a seven-match winning run in all competitions ahead of the weekend's action, Guardiola replied: "Brilliant. It’s Mauricio’s third season there, so they play how he wants – strong physically, good build-up, quality between the lines.

"They have great full-backs with Rose and Walker and it’s a real good team – they play attractive football. The players are in the right positions."

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