Guardiola reveals his only advice to De Bruyne: Do the simple things properly

Kevin De Bruyne's only downside as a footballer is that he can be too good for his own good, according to Pep Guardiola.

Manchester City's playmaker is having another vintage season. Having driven the Blues to the Premier League title in the 2017/18 season, he has returned from an injury-hit campaign at a superb level and is well-placed to break Thierry Henry's record for the most assists in a league campaign.

De Bruyne also turned it on on the grandest stage so far - against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in the Champions League on Wednesday night, he plucked an assist from nowhere for Gabriel Jesus to equalise and then stepped up nervelessly to slot home the penalty that gives City the lead in the tie.

Guardiola has spoken before about how the Belgian can see things that others cannot on a football pitch. And in struggling to find the words to express how good he is, he spoke about his only advice being remembering him to play simply because his mind so often chases the extraordinary situations in a game.

"It's not necessary for me to say absolutely anything about Kevin any more. I'd just say, 'Take a look at how he plays'" said Guardiola.

"The performance level, the continuity, the influence in our final third and on our finishing, the desire, his calmness and positivity. I mean, I asked him, 'Kevin, what did you feel before you took that penalty' and he just said, 'I'm going to score'. He doesn't feel much pressure, he likes to play in the big events, he's an exceptional player.

"I say to him, 'Kevin, don't forget, do the simple things properly'. Sometimes he's alone and might lose the ball.

"He's able to see something special and you have the spaces no one else can see but even with that he's improving and improving.

"He's not 33 or 34. He's still a lot of years to play and always you have the feeling when he's on the pitch that he's never disconnected, even if he's not influencing the game at that moment. It's important to be like that."

City's players can claim another medal when they take on Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup final and De Bruyne is expected to be at the heart of their efforts.

He can be seen talking to the manager during breaks in a game with his opinion valued by the coach, and has also stepped up to captain the team this season when David Silva or Fernandinho have not been on the pitch. At the Bernabeu, he knew he was going to score the penalty and that was all Guardiola wanted.

If De Bruyne has taken on these extra responsibilities, it is not because Guardiola is trying to challenge him.

“Honestly, with these types of players , the challenge comes from inside themselves," said the coach. "If you have to push them to be something special they are not big, big big. I don't like players who complain. If a guy wants to be better than he already is then it is up to him.

“I don't believe too much in trying to seduce them to become better players. They all know what it takes to improve – so it has to come from them. The big things in sport always come from inside the players. Not the trainers. The one detail that all the best players have is to never complain. They don't complain to the manager, the club, because they know it is up to them to become better day by day.

“The others, they are the ones who make reasons why they can't do it. That's why they change clubs all the time and never end up with a top club. The big players always look at themselves.

“Unfortunately, when Kevin helped us get 100 points he still wasn't good enough to be the best player in the league. Maybe in the future.”