Guardiola content with City stopper Bravo

Claudio Bravo’s fancy footwork may have already caused concern for some Manchester City fans but Pep Guardiola is adamant he won’t be asking the goalkeeper to change his playing style.

City’s former No.1 Joe Hart was sent on loan to Torino because his skill with the ball at feet was not considered up to Guardiola’s standards, with Bravo brought in from Barcelona instead.

Yet the Chilean stopper had a couple of dicey moments on debut – a 2-1 derby win over Manchester United – as he spilled Wayne Rooney’s free-kick, allowing Zlatan Ibrahimovic to score United’s goal, and mis-controlled on a couple of other occasions which nearly allowed the Red Devils in again.

But Guardiola claims the resilience Bravo showed means he has no doubts that his new goalkeeper will be a success at the Eithad Stadium.

“What Claudio did [against Manchester United] was one of the best performances I’ve ever seen,” said Guardiola.

“I like goalkeepers to play in front and after that [United] goal, he continued playing in our build-up, playing long balls and coming out to pick it up.

(Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

“In football, it’s about how you react to mistakes – it shows character. He continued playing. It means a lot.

“The way we train and the way we play has given me a lot of confidence.

“I like the keepers to attack the ball and after what happened, in the second half he continued to play and that’s a good thing about his personality.

“Yeah [if you pass the ball from the back] it can be too risky; if you lose the ball they will score but you can control the game.

“Until my last day in England I will try to play with the ball as much as possible. I know it’s impossible for 90 minutes but I’m sorry, I will not negotiate that.”