'I chose him for one reason' - Guardiola explains his choice for Manchester City captain

The decision was made solely by manager Guardiola, a departure from the player voting system used by many other clubs.

Bernardo has been a key player in the Spanish manager's team and has grown with the system. He took over from Kelvin De Bruyne following his departure this summer.

The Spanish coach has now explained his choice. "I chose him for one reason," Pep began, as quoted by Sky Sports, via Sportal.

"Last season, when we were in serious trouble, Bernardo was always there. He was always there, training every day... exhausted. At one point, we had only 13-14 players plus academy lads, and we were losing games every three days – but he was always there.

"He's the player who has played the most minutes during my time here; he's always been available. Because of his generosity, even when he isn't playing – always with a big smile, always trying to help.

"He's played at left-back, right-back, winger, defensive midfielder. It doesn't matter the position – he always thinks about what's best for the team. With all his qualities, I said he would be a good captain. And he has been a very, very good captain."

The Portuguese international inherited the armband from Kevin De Bruyne, who left for Napoli during the summer.

There have also been changes to Guardiola's own staff, with several new assistants joining, including Kolo Touré, James French, and Pepijn Lijnders. The latter is well-known as Jürgen Klopp's long-serving assistant at Liverpool.

"For Pep [Lijnders], I thought: If he's been with Jürgen Klopp for so, so many years, this guy must be good! From the very first day, we had an incredible connection. I think it's very easy to work with me because I give immense freedom for them to do what they believe in, and it only took one phone call to say, 'Let's do it! Let's go together!'," the former Barcelona coach explained.

"Pep Lijnders, James French, Kolo Touré… they have knowledge that I don't have, that I've never had! And they pass it on to me, and maybe that helps in other areas, and all together we can make the team better…" Guardiola added.