Mateo Kovacic, who boasts four Champions League winners' medals and has played under a number of legendary football managers, knew within two weeks of joining Manchester City which manager was the best.

The Croatian made a £25million move from Chelsea in the summer of 2023 and has since become a regular for City, helping the club win the Premier League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA World Club Cup.

Before his time in Manchester, Kovacic spent five years at Chelsea, securing the Europa League and Champions League titles with the Blues, as well as the Super Cup and World Club Cup double. During his career there, he played under four different managers, most notably Thomas Tuchel who clinched the most prestigious European trophy with the club in the 2020/21 season.

Tuchel departed Stamford Bridge following a disagreement with owner Todd Boehly in September 2022, but has since continued to demonstrate his managerial prowess elsewhere, first at Bayern Munich and now with England.

However, it appears that Kovacic believes there is no comparison between Tuchel and his current manager. The 30-year-old had only played in two pre-season friendlies following his transfer when he spoke about the impact of Guardiola on his game.

"I'm only here for two weeks now, but you can see straight away that he has great ideas," he said. "It really is on another level. I think he is the best coach in the world."

This statement carries additional weight considering Kovacic's three-season stint at Real Madrid before his 2018 move to London. During this time, the club clinched three consecutive Champions League titles under Zinedine Zidane, although Kovacic didn't feature in any of the finals.

However, he doubled down on his admiration for Guardiola, expressing in November 2023 his wish to have worked with him earlier in his career. "So I'm happy I can learn from him and what he tells you," he shared with City's club website.

"I would've loved someone to have told me a few years ago. But yeah, now I can still learn and you can really tell he is fantastic. I've really enjoyed it from the first moment. Even though it was tough the first few days to (understand) what he wants."