The Spaniard was inducted into the League Managers Association (LMA) hall of fame for reaching the milestone, with ex-Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson saying the longevity in achieving the landmark “can never be underestimated”.
On Sunday, Guardiola and City come up against a Liverpool side that they have forged a classic rivalry with, as one of the two teams have won the Premier League in each of the past eight seasons.
“I think we pushed Liverpool to be better and they pushed us to be better, for sure,” said Guardiola.
“If I had to choose one rival for this personal milestone – I want to share it with many, many people – that would be the best.
“Because I have been in this country longer than ever, Barcelona the impact in my life as a ballboy, football player and manager was obvious and Bayern were an incredible step as well.”
With 10 losses, the Reds – along with Tottenham – are the side Guardiola has suffered the most defeats against and he has heaped praise on the opponents for pushing him to be the best and also credited former boss Jurgen Klopp.
The German is the manager he has faced the most number of times during his career (31) and also beating Guardiola on the most occasions (11).
“Liverpool, especially with Jurgen, have been the biggest rival in this country,” he added. “It could not be better, to be honest. The universe decide that. It’s nice to live it at our best.
“What happened with the Jurgen period means this has been the biggest because maybe after the first season the Premier League was between us and them.
“Always I enjoyed this healthy rivalry. I always had the feeling of how much we respected each other. Jurgen gave me a lot and I miss him. He gave me a lot in terms of how much I had to do to try and beat him.”
