Pep Guardiola is not thinking about any Manchester City enemies as he concentrates on getting his team up to speed for the season.
The Blues boss last year spoke of his need for enemies - "I love when people hate me and hope I fail. It gives me fire and makes me think 'OK, watch this," he said - as a way of fuelling his motivation, and City certainly had plenty of rivalry last year both on and off the pitch with eight Premier League clubs getting involved in their appeal over a Champions League ban at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Guardiola has insisted that he is up for the challenge as he takes on a career-first and manages the same club for a fifth season, although he has said he still has to earn a new deal to stay beyond 2021.
However, those rivalries appear to have taken a back seat for the moment as the Catalan coach explained how he has no need for that motivation.
"Sometimes, when someone pushes me, yes, I fight back," he told Sky Sports ahead of the Leeds game. "You need those hypothetical enemies sometimes - to say, 'Ok, I'll show you who we are as a team.'
"But right now? I don't need them. I'm stable, I'm calm."
Guardiola was similarly serene after his side could only draw at Leeds, dropping points in consecutive league games for the first time in nearly two years. City's manager refused to be panicked by the prospect of already being eight points behind Liverpool should the champions beat Aston Villa.
