Bayern Munich held 66 percent of the possession in their Champions League win over Arsenal.
“What I want, my desire, is to have 100% possession,” said Pep Guardiola.
Guardiola was unhappy at how his players had “lost easy balls” in the first 10 minutes while in the second half, there was frustration at how they permitted Arsenal to counter. “We wanted to control the game but we allowed a lot of counters,” Guardiola said. “This was not correct and we have to improve on that, definitely.”
Guardiola believes possession starves the opposition of opportunity.
“People say that ball possession might not be the most important thing but for me, it is the most important thing,” Guardiola said. “It’s the first step and then the second, third and fourth steps can come after. With the ball, you have more possibilities to create something and to concede fewer chances.
“I have a lot of respect for my players and when they decided to become footballers, they wanted to play with the ball. It’s not only about running. It’s all about having the ball, playing and dealing with the ball. Because we have had the ball, we have scored a lot of goals and haven’t conceded a lot.”
Guardiola believes this year's Bayern team is his best.
“This is the best team of my era here,” Guardiola said. “People want to see successful football, to see attacking football with all 10 outfield players and we need some time for that. This is now our third year together, there have been a lot of matches and discussions, and we know each other much better now. I know my players better. We know what we want.
“People might think that I came to Bayern and knew the players immediately but no. You need time for that. It’s a lot better this year. We have improved. It’s not perfect yet because in the second half against Arsenal, we conceded but it’s a lot better than before.”