Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Johan Cruyff, Arsene Wenger, Marcello Lippi, Vicente del Bosque, Fabio Capello… and more, and more, and more… All names of great football coaches who have left their mark on world football. However, one truly brilliant specialist is missing from this endless list. His name is Pep Guardiola, and according to many, his place is at the very top of the list above.
A unique football player, Thierry Henry, had the opportunity in 2016 to speak about Guardiola’s arrival at Manchester City. The two, of course, had worked together during their time at Barcelona seven years earlier, and in the summer of 2016, the Frenchman stated that “Pep will revolutionize English football.”
Very few people believed these words at the time, especially coming from a man who had played under Arsene Wenger for nearly 10 years. Of course, Guardiola’s business card upon his arrival in England was rich enough to make such a loud statement.
But what turned out to be the case? It turned out that what Henry said was perhaps the least that could be said about Pep Guardiola – for his pursuit of perfectionism, for his clarity of vision in the game, for his passion, for his ability to extract the best from every player he coaches, and dozens of other qualities that fully describe his football.
And since Manchester City is very close to achieving an historic first treble for an English club in the 21st century (and a second personal one for Guardiola), it may be time for “almost” all of us to agree that the 52-year-old Spaniard is the greatest manager of all time.
Ever since becoming the youngest coach, Guardiola won the Champions League – in his first season as the head coach of Barcelona, he won 30 trophies in 14 years, including 10 titles in Spain, Germany, and England. Of course, he was fortunate enough to work with some of the greatest players to ever step onto a football field, like Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez, Thierry Henry, Robert Lewandowski, Manuel Neuer, Sergio Aguero, Kevin De Bruyne, and Erling Haaland. Many would say that he would not have achieved all of these successes if it were not for these players. And perhaps they are right, although we will never know for sure…
Yes, he has not won as many titles in the Premier League as Sir Alex Ferguson or as many trophies in the Champions League as Carlo Ancelotti. Others will argue that he simply continued the idea of total football created by Rinus Michels and inherited by Johan Cruyff. Thirdly, Arigo Sacchi, Valery Lobanovskyi, and Ernst Happel could be contenders for the greatest coach. Fourth, names like Jose Mourinho and Jurgen Klopp could be mentioned. Or past specialists like Bill Shankly, Matt Busby, Bob Paisley, and Alf Ramsey…
But if we have to be honest, Pep surpasses each and every one of them. And no, it is not just the accolades that set Guardiola apart from the competition. Everything is due to the brilliance of his football and professionalism that he displays. His teams don’t just defeat their opponents, they “humiliate” them, as was the case very recently in the game that was defined as the “match of the season in the Premier League.” A match in which the team that had topped the standings for 9 months was soundly defeated by the class and greatness of Pep’s game.
With the fourth goal in Arsenal’s net, Erling Haaland scored Manchester City’s 995th goal in the “Pep” era. And as things stand, there is every chance that the 1000th will be scored against Fulham on Sunday. Or at the latest against West Ham during the week.
The fact that in just over a month Guardiola may become the only coach to win 2 trebles and 6 trophies in one season is indicative enough.
