Pep Guardiola had no interest in signing Thiago Alcantara from Bayern Munich because he believes Manchester City are well enough stocked in central midfield.
Thiago broke into Barcelona's first team during Guardiola's time in charge at Camp Nou and the Catalan tactician made him the flagship signing for his first season at Bayern in 2013-14.
Nevertheless, the Spain playmaker is now on the brink of joining Liverpool and bolstering Jurgen Klopp's bid for back-to-back league titles at Anfield.
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Speaking ahead of City's season opener at Wolves on Monday, Guardiola told reporters that even the departure of club great David Silva at the end of last season - a man with similar qualities to Thiago when it comes to dictating the tempo of the play and operating shrewdly in tight spaces - did not make him feel the need for reinforcements.