Guardiola watched on as De Bruyne ran himself into the ground as one of 10 City players competing against 11 Fulham players for 64 minutes at the Etihad Stadium.
The boss knows all about the quality of De Bruyne but, talking after the 3-1 win over Brighton a fortnight ago, he called for more from his star midfielder.
And, following a 1-0 win over Leicester and 2-1 victory over Fulham, where De Bruyne was here, there and everywhere, the manager got what he wanted.
De Bruyne scored the winner from a free-kick against the Foxes and followed that up by earning the vital penalty against the Cottagers.
The manager was thrilled and thinks the Belgian’s high-energy display will have ensured he dropped off immediately after his head hit the pillow.
He said: “In football, players are up and down. You can’t play seven seasons like he did today. Sometimes they play that level. I know that.
“Today, he won the penalty, I know it. That’s his natural way. But I want his movements. I want his influence in the team.
“Because when Kevin is involved with these kind of situations, we are a better team.
“I don’t want to see the Kevin in the Bernabeu second leg. I don’t want to see the Kevin in the Champions League against Chelsea. He was not involved. He did not touch one ball, two balls.
“It depends on him. He has the freedom and the movements. When that happens, he’s happier.
“Today he’s happier. After Leicester, he’s happier than the player before.
“He can make an assist all the time. But today it’s not just an assist, it was not just the goal. He was there. As a manager, this is what I want for him.
“He will sleep like a baby, 100 per cent. Happier. Tired. Like a baby.”
