Guardiola praises Aguero, still amazed at PL’s intensity

Pep Guardiola keeps grinding out wins in the Premier League, and admits he’s still adapting to the intensity of England’s top flight.

The opponent this time was Burnley, with the hosts at Turf Moor going up 1-0 before a pair of Sergio Aguero goals rallied Man City to a 2-1 win and a slot atop the table before Liverpool and Chelsea took the pitch Saturday.

[ MORE: JPW’s match recap ]

While some outsiders have questioned whether PL managers simply hype the league’s physical nature for their jobs, Guardiola continues to state that his learning curve is a real thing.

“The same like Arsenal, the same like Liverpool, the same like all the teams come here. I have to learn to control the second balls. In Spain and Germany it happens sometimes, but not at this intensity. ... The win was so important for us. We’re still learning the way England plays, we’re still learning the referees.”

Guardiola also praised two-goal man Aguero, who didn’t need works of wonderment to find the back of the net with his workmanlike finishes.

“From the beginning, he was ready. His body language today was really good. Of course he has the quality to score amazing goals, but we need him in the box.”

City has a tough run ahead, with its next four PL fixtures as such: home to Chelsea, at Leicester, home to Watford, home to Arsenal. They’ll need to scoop gritty wins like Saturday’s three points at Burnley a few more times.

Follow @NicholasMendola