Barcelona defender, Gerard Pique, has claimed his relationship with Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola, changed after he started dating the Colombian singer Shakira.
Pique re-joined Barca from Manchester United in 2008.
Hed was part of the squad that won three LaLiga titles and two Champions League successes in the four years under Guardiola.
However, by the final year of Guardiola’s time at the club, Pique said several factors had taken their toll on the relationship between the manager and his players.
“We reached a moment of tension with him, not just me but the dressing room in general,” Pique told La Sotana on Monday.
“The rivalry with Jose Mourinho [at Real Madrid] wore us down a lot. Pep wanted absolute control over everything that was happening.
“I started dating Shakira and our relationship changed. Now, the relationship is perfect. But there was a lot of pressure on me then. I felt like I had to do everything in training perfectly.
“If there was a moment I thought about leaving Barca, it was that [2011-12] season. I struggled in that last season with Guardiola.”
