TSG Hoffenheim won't focus on their knowledge of Pep Guardiola in an attempt to gain an edge over Manchester City when they travel to the Etihad on Wednesday, according to the club's scouting chief Lutz Pfannenstiel.
When these two side's first met, the reigning Premier League champions overcame an early setback after Ishak Belfodil raced through to put Hoffenheim in front after just 44 seconds, relying on a late strike from David Silva to seal all three points following Sergio Agüero first-half goal.
Hoffenheim's quick start to the match wasn't a fluke either. Die Kraichgauer have scored six goals in the opening 10 minutes of games so far this season, and Pfannenstiel says this is a conscious decision from the German club.
"We always try to be immediately present and we know that we have a lot of offensive quality," Pfannenstiel told 90min.
"For us, it’s very important to play our game and not think too much about the opponent. We want to play offensive, aggressive and attractive, that’s our philosophy."
Manchester City's 2-1 win at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena saw manager Pep Guardiola maintain his 100% winning record on the road to Hoffenheim, a record that was first started 2013 when he was in charge of Bundesliga rivals Bayern Munich.
Despite their past experience with the Manchester City boss, Pfannenstiel insists that Hoffenheim won't be fixating on Guardiola's approach to the game.
"Pep Guardiola is an incredible coach, we know him well from his time at Bayern Munich," Pfannenstiel added. "But now he has a new team, different players and also is very flexible in his system.
"Of course, it helps if you know the opponent's manager, but at the end of the day, we need to focus on Man City and not Pep."
Hoffenheim currently sit at the bottom of Group F, but their hopes of an adventure in Europe will be kept alive if they can cause an upset against Manchester City on Wednesday.
Julien Nagelsmann's side will also need a helping hand from French giants Olympique Lyonnais when they take on Shakhtar Donetsk.
Source :
90min
