The 18-year-old midfielder has benefited from the City boss’ tutelage since he arrived in Manchester last summer, being in and around the first team squad and making three senior appearances.
His debut came against Oxford United in the 2018/19 Carabao Cup and he has turned out twice in this season’s competition, making his home debut in the fourth-round victory over Southampton.
Bernabe admits it’s been a brilliant experience for a young player and hailed the support he has received from the senior players every time he is involved in training or a match, but he reserved special praise for the manager he loves to learn from.
“Training under Pep Guardiola is something fantastic,” he said.
“He’s one of the greatest managers in football history. The way he explains things, what he teaches and how he tries to explain football… is something wonderful.
“The first team players always try to help you. I just try to look at the small details of each one of them and take something I can learn from them.”
In two of his first team appearances, Bernabe has shared the pitch with another teenager in Eric Garcia.
Having both progressed through Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy, Bernabe joined City 12 months after the defender but made his competitive debut three months earlier.
Since then, however, Garcia has featured more regularly for the first team, playing the full 90 minutes on five occasions and making his Premier League debut against Watford in September.
That their journeys have been similar has been helpful, Bernabe says, and he admits he has been quick to pick Garcia’s brains to help prepare himself for the demands of first team football.
“I have been sharing a dressing room and experiences with Eric for nearly ten years,” he added.
“He is a very good friend of mine, a great teammate and a very good person. It is a pleasure for me to share all these experiences with him.
“We always try to talk about these kinds of experiences. He took the step last year that I’m taking now. I try to ask him about his experiences, to try to focus on what will come to me in some way.
“I just think about training hard and continuing to fight and enjoy it. I don’t think beyond that.”
