"Shut off or burn out, Pep!"

"Shut off or burn out, Pep!"

Barcelona's outgoing technical secretary has warned coach Pep Guardiola he must learn to shut off from football to avoid burning out.

Txiki Begiristain, who was in charge of player signings during Joan Laporta's tenure as president, is set to leave his post as Barca build for the future under new president Sandro Rosell.

The former Barca player believes Guardiola is absolutely the right man to lead the club forward, but claims his former team-mate needs to slow down.

"He should take things in a more relaxed manner. He is demanding, obsessive with his work and there were even a couple of months when I noticed he was thinner. I saw he was suffering," Begiristain said at a press conference.

"I said to him: 'try and take things differently. Dedicate the hours you need, but when you go home, try to forget about work a little. There is a danger of burning out. Controlling everything is impossible'."

Begiristain believes if Guardiola can learn to switch off at times, he can go on to be successful at Barca for many years to come.

"He has to evolve, he has to change. He will learn how to give his best performance over time and if he achieves that balance, he can be a coach for many years. There is no danger of him losing his effectiveness," he said.

The 45 year-old says time has proven Barca's decision to appoint Guardiola was the right one, with the club having won seven titles in two years under the former Spain midfielder, but believes the current coach cannot yet be considered in the same league as Dutch legend Johan Cruyff.

"Time has shown that it was the best decision," he said.

"Pep has had two absolutely marvellous years and he needs to have a couple more to reach that level.

"Cruyff won four leagues in a row and the cycle (for Guardiola) has to be longer, but Pep can achieve that."