Zambrotta: Guardiola's Barca had more world-class players
Pep Guardiola will find fewer world-class players in the Barcelona side facing Man City than in the one he coached, says Gianluca Zambrotta.
Former Barcelona defender Gianluca Zambrotta is unsure over whether the club's current vintage is superior to Pep Guardiola's treble-winning heroes.
Guardiola makes his latest return to Camp Nou this week as Manchester City manager in an eagerly awaited Champions League Group C clash.
The Premier League leaders must contain the star-studded forward line of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar, although Zambrotta suggested Guardiola had more world-class players at his disposal when he swept the board in 2008-09 than Luis Enrique does now.
Even if there is less reliance on Barca's feted La Masia academy in the present day, the ex-Italy international still recognises plenty of commonalities in his former employers' playing style.
"It is hard to say [which side was better], both teams had great quality and great players," Zambrotta told Omnisport.
"Maybe Guardiola's Barcelona had more world-class players.
"This maybe was a team with more players brought up in La Masia but the philosophy is the same - attacking football, and this hasn't changed from Guardiola's age to Luis Enrique's."
Get FourFourTwo Newsletter
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
Luis Enrique's Barca overcame Bayern Munich when they were under Guardiola's charge at the semi-final stage of the Champions League in 2015, before going on to defeat Juventus in the final.