Pep Guardiola will take charge of his 1,000th game when Manchester City host Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday and the Spanish manager is in awe of the numbers he has achieved in his career. Guardiola has collected 715 victories in all competitions since first taking charge of Barcelona B in 2007, going on to lift 12 top-flight titles at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City, as well as three Champions League crowns. The 54-year-old has lost only 128 matches, claiming another 14 cup victories during his illustrious career.

Asked by BBC Sport if he knows how many wins he has achieved over the course of his time in management, Guardiola replied: "Of course I know, a lot. The numbers are insane, I'm sorry to tell you. "I'm not thinking how many but when you have the milestones and you read what you have done, the victories, the average, not just in Premier League but in the Champions League too, we have won incredible things in Barcelona, Bayern Munich and here. "It is difficult to reach and if I start again I would not reach it, it is too much games. A few defeats, comparing 1,000 games and hopefully on Sunday I hope we can continue."

Guardiola is seen as changing the face of English football with a style of play that has been imitated by other managers across the country. He has also achieved incredible numbers at City, leading the team to become the first to reach 100 points in the league, the first team to achieve the domestic treble and becoming the first side to win four league titles in a row.

Guardiola said: "It looks like I have false humility but this amount of percentage, beyond 70% of victories - [it means] every 10 games we win seven and will draw one or two. "It can happen because you are at Barcelona, Munich and City with the players I have. After that, it is a lot of hard work. Dedication, passion, love - in that nobody [can] beat me. "I love to scrutinise the secrets of what you can do to opponents, convince the players and go in together. All the times the players follow me. All the time."

Asked for his response on being called the greatest manager of all time by some, Guardiola said with a smile: "They are completely right! "The influence of every manager has been through history. Of course, I can say I've been part of that because the numbers explain, I've had success and it's been nice to watch my teams. "So I'm there. But I never started thinking 'I want to be the best'."

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."