Rest for everyone, except Pep

After the game against Sevilla, FC Barcelona coach Josep Guardiola (39) gave everyone a day and a half off to rest and recharge. But according to an article in Sport, even as they prepared to fly back to Barcelona, it was evident that Pep’s mind was working constantly.

The article in Sport points out that the Saturday match was not easy for the Barça team, who flew to Sevilla for the away leg of the Spanish Super Cup. The players had been on an exhausting schedule that saw them arrive back from the Asian tour that previous Monday and begin double training sessions that week. In addition, Alves, Messi, Ibrahimovic, Bojan, and Jeffren took part in international friendlies midweek; thus on the return flight from Sevilla — where they faced a team that was preparing for its Champions League match in the middle of this week and where temperatures were between 30 and 35 degrees Celsius — all of the faces reflected an accumulated tiredness.

Upon their arrival at the airport in San Pablo, the players looked exhausted, and the only thing on their minds seemed to be getting some rest as they waited to board the plane back to Barcelona. All, that is, except Pep Guardiola, who immediately took a seat near the gate and fell into a discussion with Tito Vilanova. With an intensity and with gestures, Guardiola made his point to his assistant: that he didn’t like that the team lost their identity when they got tired in the second half. He emphasized the necessity of playing out from the back and not resorting the easier way out (kicking long passes).

As the team finally made it back to Barcelona at 02:30 Sunday morning, it is a fair guess that while the players might have rested during their day and a half free, Pep Guardiola did not.