Gary Neville and Pep Guardiola talk Manchester, Raheem Sterling and choosing between Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero

By Gary Neville, Football Expert @GNev2

Ahead of the Manchester derby Pep Guardiola met with Gary Neville and confessed his love for the music of Oasis and admitted that he is good friends with Noel Gallagher

Gary Neville sat down with Pep Guardiola ahead of Derby Day on Sky Sports Premier League, with the Manchester City boss discussing life in Manchester, the form of Raheem Sterling and choosing between Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus up front.

Ahead of City's trip to Old Trafford on Sunday, Guardiola opened up to Neville about a variety of subjects, including tactics, the Premier League and rivals Manchester United.

The full interview can be seen on Sky Sports Premier League over the weekend, as well as On Demand, but here's a few snippets as a former Red sat down with a current Sky Blue.

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Pep on Manchester

From the passionate fans to the culture in Manchester, Guardiola spoke highly of the city, and revealed which member of Oasis he messages on a regular basis.

"Even last season it was not good in terms of results, but people here were so nice. Here the culture to respect this sport is fantastic. Everybody speaks about that," Guardiola said.

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"The city is alive, in terms of the theatre, the restaurants, the museums, the shows, it's every week. And then there's concerts and concerts. It's nice to live this way because in Catalonia it's completely different.

Neville then asked Guardiola about music in Manchester, to which Guardiola replied: "Of course Oasis. Noel Gallagher - I think I can say we are friends, so we text a lot. I met him two or three times, I went with my family to the last concert here at the Arena, so it's good - with a new band.

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Image: Noel Gallagher will join Gary Neville and Graeme Souness in the Sky Sports studio at Old Trafford on Sunday

"He was in one of the best rock groups in the whole of history.

And when Neville notified Guardiola that Noel would be part of Sky Sports' coverage at Old Trafford, the City boss said: "Oh yeah? That's good, I didn't know. He told me he was going to Old Trafford but I didn't know it was there [with Sky]. Please, take care of him."

Pep on Aguero or Jesus

When choosing one striker, how do you decide between Aguero and Jesus? Guardiola admitted that while the two have differing qualities, it's a case of trying to keep them both happy.

"It's maybe one of the toughest decisions. Both are top players and both deserve to play. When you're playing with two strikers it's easy to take this decision," Guardiola said.

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"When I pick one, I try to make the decision so they're both happy. There's not a specific reason because normally we play against teams that are so deep.

"Sergio is more intuitive, while Gabriel is more aggressive. Gabriel is the best striker in the world when it comes to high pressing, there's no one [better]. The intensity, the reading between the central defenders, attacking the holding midfielders from behind and the movement. Gabriel is top.

"Sometimes you can reduce the high pressing because a lot of the time it's long balls [from the opposition], so it depends, there's not a specific situation - I'm so happy with both of them."

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Pep on Sterling

Sterling turned 23 on Friday, and Guardiola spoke briefly about the winger's development, with the England international earning plaudits after a stellar start to the season.

"I think he understands better the way that we want to play. The way we play, we try to help him develop his skills, but I've said many times, the quality of the players depends on them," said Guardiola.

"We are so happy - today is his birthday, 23 years old. It's still so young, and there is still a gap to improve.

"I think with Old Trafford two years ago, and last season too, it's going to help him realise what he has to do in the future."

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