The Bayern boss feels new signing Douglas Costa has plenty of potential but will not be the world’s best player, with that title belonging to a Camp Nou star
Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola believes that the world’s best player has been at Barcelona for years.
The Bavarians have the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Arjen Robben, Mario Gotze and Franck Ribery among their ranks, while they added Douglas Costa from Shakhtar Donetsk this summer.
Though Guardiola is enthusiastic about the Brazilian’s future, he feels his former club have the world’s finest player.
“Douglas Costa could be one of the best. But not the best – he has been at Barcelona for years,” he told reporters.
Guardiola is also keen to make history by leading Bayern to their fourth Bundesliga title in a row, a feat no club has managed before in history.
“Nobody has managed the fourth championship, so that would be a big step,” said the head coach. “But we have strong competitors: not just Wolfsburg, but Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Monchengladbach, Dortmund and Schalke.
“In addition, I want to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League with this squad, then we have to see what happens from there.”
Guardiola also dismissed the possibility that Kevin De Bruyne would be arriving at the club, or indeed that Mario Gotze or Thomas Muller might leave.
“Thomas remains, Mario remains, De Bruyne is not coming. I knew that a long time ago, for two weeks now,” he added, before discussing the fitness and form of Franck Ribery and Xabi Alonso respectively.
“Ribery is getting better. We hope that he can come back as soon as possible. I speak here every day with him..
“In our [Champions League] semi-final against Barcelona, Xabi was our best player. He needs a midfielder who will play the ball and run at his side, then Xabi plays better.
“He’s an insane professional, I have no doubt about his quality. Thiago Alcantara could play an important role when he is fit, but he needs more minutes.”
Bayern kick off their Bundesliga campaign with a home clash against Hamburg on Friday.