In 2007, Pep Guardiola was nothing more than a youth academy coach, having never managed a senior team before. But just one year later, he was given a shot as the Barcelona manager, and within just one season, he transformed them into arguably the greatest football team of all time, winning six trophies in that year alone.
In his four years there, he broke record after record, created a style of football that changed the game forever, and turned a little Argentinian into the greatest football player on the planet. But how on earth did he do it? How did an unproven manager turn a struggling Barcelona into an unstoppable machine? This is the story of how Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona became the greatest football team of all time and destroyed everyone in their path.
The swinger and Sha the goal still Messi. Pep Guardiola beats Sir Alex Ferguson for the second time in two years in the final. Now whilst Pep’s journey with Barcelona as a manager began in 2008 that’s not where the relationship with the club began. So to understand that we have to go back to the very beginning because on the 18th of January 1971 Yseph Guardiola or Pep as we know him was born in Catalonia and by the age of 13 he joined Lamasia Barcelona’s famous youth academy where he was quickly recognized for his
intelligence and vision on the field. Pep rose the ranks at Barcelona and he played as a central midfielder with a very distinct style. He wasn’t the fastest or the most physically dominant, but he had the gift of understanding the game better than anyone else. A key feature which will always make him stand out later on in his career.
In 1990, he was finally promoted to the first team by the icon himself, Johan Kfe, who was a huge influence on him both as a player and later on as a coach. And under Croy, Guardiola became a key part of Barca’s dream team with the likes of Stochov, Ludrop, and Kman, becoming the side that won Barcelona’s first ever Champions League in 1992 and four successive Spanish league titles from 1991 to 1994.
Pep Guardiola then went on to become captain of Barcelona in 1997, a role which he held until he left the club in 2001 and continued his playing career with stints in Italy at Brussia and Roma. then moved to Ali in Qatar and finally joined Dorado in Mexico where he would end his career with a trophy cabinet consisting of six La Liga titles, two Copa del Reyes and a European Cup.
Pep would then take his first steps into coaching in 2007 when the Barcelona president Juan Leaporta and director of footballistain were considering new candidates to manage Barcelona B. And even though Pep Guardiola had no coaching experience, his deep understanding of Barcelona’s philosophy, his intelligence on the field, and his natural leadership skills impressed them and made him the standout candidate.
Despite having left the club over a decade ago, Guardiola remained close to Barcelona as he studied the fighter points of coaching and continued to develop his vision for the game with the aim of reintroducing a highintensity possession-based style that matched Barcelona’s DNA. So in 2007, Pep Guardiola was announced as the Barcelona B coach and his debut was nothing short of a huge success since Barcelona B who had been struggling in Spain’s fourth tier division showed major improvement under Guardiola, winning the league and securing promotion to the Sakunda
deficion B, Spain’s third tier. Now whilst Pep was managing the Barcelona B team, it was Frank Reichard who was in charge of the senior squad and things were not going too well. In the 2007208 season, they finished third in La Liga and got knocked out of both the Champions League and the Copa del Rey in the semi-finals, proving a nightmare season in Catalunia.
And this meant that change was needed. The Barcelona board were looking for a man to take over and bring glory back to Barcelona. And at that time, they were very close to finalizing things with Jose Mourinho. He had won the Champions League with Porto and won the Premier League with Chelsea for the first time in 50 years.
So, he was the hottest manager around at the time. And this deal almost went through right up until one man blocked it. Yoan K urged the board to opt for Pep Guardiola instead. He believed that Pep’s history with the club along with his great success with the B team made him the perfect candidate to take charge.
K saw something in Pep that not many others did at the time as he was just a young and unproven coach. But despite this, the Barcelona board listened and opted for Guardiola over Mourinho, which would prove to be one of the greatest decisions the club has ever made. But this decision would also mean the club made an enemy out of Jose Mourinho and this rivalry was one that would get extremely heated over the coming years.
But for now, Pep Guardiola was at the wheel heading into the 2008 2009 season with the goal of taking Barcelona back to glory. And boy did he deliver. Now despite underperforming last season, this was not a bad Barcelona team at all. Just a couple of years before this, they lifted the Champions League trophy with a prime Raldinho at the epicenter of the team.
And entering the 0809 season, the squad consisted of stars like Messi, Enri, Chavei, Iniesta, and Puol. They weren’t lacking talent, they just lacked direction. And Pep was about to change everything. Guardiola made instant bold decisions by heavily reshaping the squad, letting go of seasoned players like Balandor winner Ronaldinho and Deco as he feared the negative influence their party lifestyle would have on the younger players in the squad and he brought in key signings like Danny Alves and Gerard Pique while promoting young talents like Sergio
Buscans and Pedro to the first team. Pep knew from the very start that this team was going to be built around Lionel Messi. He was already one of the best players in the team but not yet the best player in the world as Ronaldo had that spot having won the balonor the previous season playing for Manchester United.
However, despite all these changes, his new team began with a shaky start in La Liga as Barcelona lost 1 nil to Newmania and then drew 1-1 with Russ Santandere. But things quickly turned around as Barcelona then went on a remarkable unbeaten run in La Liga for over 20 matches, proving to all the doubters that he had what it takes to achieve glory.
And with his squad beginning to click, Guardiola’s side stormed through the league with an incredible streak. And come early May, they found themselves sitting four points top of La Liga with a crucial Alcláico ahead that would pretty much determine the title. Barcelona thumped Real Madrid 6-2, sending them seven points clear at the top and they were crowned champions just the week after making this Barcelona’s first league title since 2006.
Pep had got his Barcelona team playing an unseen style of football. Their tikit taka play, quick passes amongst the midfield and ruthlessness in attack made them pretty much unstoppable in the Copa del Rey. Peps Barcelona secured their spot in the final and then crushed Athletic Bill Bao 4 to1 making that two trophies already for the season.
But as great as a domestic double is, there was a bigger prize at stake. They topped their Champions League group with four wins, a draw and a loss, and were drawn against Lyon in the round of 16 where they made light work winning 6-3 over the two legs. In the quarterfinals, they were drawn against Bayern Munich, where yet again, this Barcelona team made light work of the German giants, winning 5-1 on aggregate, securing their spot in the semi-finals, where they played one of the most controversial games in the competition’s history against Chelsea.
The first leg was played at the No Cup and finished as a goalless draw. But come the second leg, the referee was questionable to say the least. Controversial decision after controversial decision, all seemingly going the way of Barcelona. And then in the 93rd minute, Adress Iniesta stepped up, putting the ball in the back of the net to send this Barcelona team to the Champions League final.
Pepsen were now on the cusp of glory, on the cusp of becoming the first Spanish team to ever lift a treble. And the only thing standing in their way was Manchester United, the current champions with Cristiano Ronaldo in their team, the current Valondor winner. Pep lined up his men. Valdez in goal but back four with Buo, Té, Pique and Svinhinho.
A perfectly balanced midfield with Busquett holding and Iniesta and Chavi playing ahead of him. Tiar Enri played wide on the left. Samuel led the line and the magical Lionel Messi played in off the right. Pep fielded an unstoppable side and they made the game look easy with goals from Etto and Messi sealing the final two goals to nothing as Pep’s men were crowned champions of Europe.
As great as the team was, there was one man who stood out above the rest. As Lionol Messi finished the year with 38 goals and 19 assists in 51 appearances, which secured the little Argentine his first balonour. But as well as things were going for Pep Guardiola and his men, the following season would prove to be more dramatic than the first as they would continue with their great form.
But this year, things would turn out differently in Europe as Jose Mourinho was quietly building a super team over in Milan. And he was going all out to take the Champions League away from Pep in Barcelona in what would be the second of Pep’s four iconic seasons in Spain. As Pep moved into his second season, he once again felt the need for Barcelona to make some key changes.
most particularly a swap that sent top scorer Samuel Etto to Inter Milan in exchange for his Latan Ibrahimovic with 48 million added to the deal. And this player swap would very soon prove to be highly significant as we’ll soon see. Alongside Ibrahimovic, Barca reinforced their squad by signing Maxwell together with a few other signings and promotions from Lamasia as Pep’s go-to starting 11 now consisted of Victor Valdez in net, Maxwell, PK Puol, and Danny Alves in defense with Busketss ahead of them as the holding midfielder. Chavy and
Iniesta were partnered together in the midfield and up front the lethal trio of Zlatan, Messi and Pedro who claimed on Respot. The season kicked off with the Spanish Super Cup in August as Guardiola’s side continued their success by overcoming Athletic Bil Bao where in the first leg Chavi and Pedro scored to secure a 2-1 victory away from home followed by a dominant 3-nil win at Camp Noil with a brace from Messi and a goal from Buon claiming the first of what would be six trophies in 2009 which shall come very soon. And just days
later in Monaco, Barca faced Shaktar Donuts in the UEFA Super Cup, which proved to be a tense match that was decided in extra time by a late Pedro goal, marking their fifth trophy of the year. They started the league campaign in a great way, too, opening the season with a 3-nil win against Sporting Khon. And they carried this momentum through the first half of the season as they went the first 21 games unbeaten in the league as they were storming to their second La Liga title.
In this time they also lifted the club world cup by beating Mexican club Alante in the semi-final and winning against the Argentine side and Studiant in the final where in extra time Messi’s winning goal secured a 2-1 victory. And with that, Barca had completed the incredible achievement of claiming six trophies within a single calendar year, making Guardiola the first manager in history to accomplish this incredible feat.
Come the 14th of February, Guardiola’s men would face their first defeat of the season as Atletico Madrid put two goals past Barcelona to win the game 2-1. This defeat would prove to be the only defeat in Barcelona’s league campaign as they went the remainder of the season unbeaten, finishing top of La Liga with a record-breaking 99 points, three points clear of second place Real Madrid.
But despite all this domestic success, not everything went Guardiola’s way this season as they faced disappointment in the Copa del Rey as Sevilla knocked them out in the round of 16. And then taking a look to Europe, they couldn’t emulate the success of last season as one man stood in their way. Barcelona made their way to the Champions League semi-finals where they faced Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan.
Despite playing at two different leagues, the rivalry between Pep and Mourinho was already clear since Pep had taken Mourinho’s spot at Barcelona just the year before. And of course, Jose was still very bitter from that. This was like fire against ice. The attacking Barcelona versus the defensive Inter Milan, the two best managers in the world.
And in the end, Peps Barcelona were defeated as Jose won the first leg at the San Zero three goals to one with the Molo Masterclass scoring one and assisting two. But it’s in the return fixture where all the drama occurred. Within 28 minutes of the match, Inter Thiago received a red card. And now with 10 men playing away against Barca, it was looking like it was going to be a sure victory for Barca.
But Jose Mourinho simply walked up to Pep and told him, “You think this is over? This is far from over. It was now a game of the mind. Inter shut up shop. They stifled Messi. And despite a late goal from PK, Inter managed to hold on. And as the final whistle blew, Mourinho went sprinting down the touch line.
finger in the air flexing his spot in the Champions League final in front of Pep. Shazinter eventually went on to win the Champions League and hugely thanks to their striker Samuel Etto who Pep traded for Zlatan that same year. And whilst was tearing it up in Milan, the same couldn’t be said for Zlatan as his relationship with Guardiola had deteriorated over the season causing a severe falling out between the two.
But despite these season’s cup setbacks, Guardiola’s men could still call this season a success as they ended it with four trophies and a plethora of individual awards. Chavy was named the 2009 World’s best playmaker with Messi and Iniesta placing second and fourth respectively and Guardiola himself was awarded the title of 2009 World Club Coach as he proceeded to sign a one-year extension to remain at the club until the end of the 2010-11 season where he was not going to let someone get the better of him in Europe again.
As Pep kicked off his third season in charge of Barcelona, he was hungry for more and started the 2010-11 season with a bang as just three days in, he made a huge move, signing Spanish star David Via from Valencia for €40 million and then Javier Mascarano for 24 million from Liverpool.
He then decided to let go of Ukrainian centerback Dmitri Chaginsky and midfielder Yaya Toué who made a move to Manchester City despite Pep’s desire to keep him. And by August, two more football giants left the club and Tiar Enri who ended his contract to join the MLS together with Zlatan Ibrahimovic who left back to Syria after the falling out with Pep.
Barcelona kicked off La Liga with conviction but soon faced a concerning challenge in September when Lionel Messi was sidelined with an ankle injury following a brutal tackle during a game against Atletico Madrid in a 2-1 victory. Thankfully, Messi was only out for two weeks and quickly returned to Pep and his team to prove a point.
And soon enough, mid November, an iconic classicalico against Real Madrid would unfold where Guardiola’s team delivered a 5n thumping at the camp no showcasing their mastery of tikitaka and proving why Messi, Chavi, and Iniesta were hailed as the world’s top players. But the cherry on the cake for this game was the fact that none other than Jose Mourinho was the manager of Real Madrid as he came to La Liga with the intentions of reigniting his rivalry and dethroning Pep and his team.
But Pep wasn’t going to let Jose beat him again and ended up thrashing the Galacticos who had the likes of Ronaldo, Di Maria, and Kakai in the team. The Real Madrid president made a fool out of Jose Mourinho as he described this game as the worst match in Madrid’s history. This Classica win secured Barcelona’s lead in the Liga by two points ahead of Real Madrid, setting them up for an intense battle for the league title.
And at the end of the year, Pep’s players were destined for individual glory yet again as Messi, Chavi, and Iniesta were announced as the top three finalists for the Balandor with Messi being named the winner for the second year in a row. Heading into the new year, Barcelona unfortunately had their unbeaten run ended by Real Batis in the Copa del Rey.
But they surged on with an elite mentality and proceeded to equal Real Madrid’s record of 15 consecutive league wins with a victory over Heroulles and even breaking the record in February with a 3-nil win against Atletico Madrid with a stunning hat-tick by none other than you guessed it Lionel Messi. The team also marched into the Copa del Rey final after defeating Almeria and was set to face Real Madrid in another long awaited Pep versus Jose showdown in which Cristiano Ronaldo scored the only goal in extra time with a powerful
header from Adi Maria cross sealing the win for Jose over Pep. But Guardiola wasn’t going to let things slide that easily because only days after the Copel Ray final, Real Madrid and Barcelona met again. this time in the Champions League semi-finals where Lionel Messi scored twice in the last 15 minutes of the first leg at the Santiago Bernap to give Barcelona a strong 2-nil advantage.
And though the second leg at Campno ended 1-1, it was enough to send Barcelona through to the final, knocking Jose and his team out to give Pep the last laugh of the season. Further on into Pep’s third season, Barcelona went on to capture their third consecutive La Liga title with a 1-1 draw against Leonte, ensuring they remained at the top of the table with a four-point lead over Madrid.
And to top it all off, Barcelona ended the season with a club record 14 away wins after defeating Maaga 3-1. But this was not enough as Barca were so informed that they even went on to claim their fourth Champions League trophy by outclassing Manchester United 3-1. meaning Pep got the better of Man United for the second time in three years in the Champions League final.
Lionel Messi was named man of the match and he was the star the entire season as he ended the Champions League campaign with 12 goals, breaking the record for the most goals in a single season. The 2010 2011 season finished with a double and a single match away from a treble. But this is where this Barcelona team would unfortunately reach their peak.
As come the 20112 season, Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid were coming back stronger than ever in the league, and things would start to slip out of Pep’s hands for once. Barcelona’s 2011 12 season was packed with thrilling matches, big milestones, and a few tough moments that gave Pep Guardiola’s final year as Barca’s manager a bittersweet ending.
The transfer window was pretty calm with only a few changes to the squad. He signed the Chilean winger Alexis Sanchez from Udina for about 37 million euros, giving a big boost to Pep’s team in his final season and also brought in Ses Fabricas from Arsenal for around 40 million euros, meaning Barcelona officially had the most insane midfield ever with Fabricas, Iniesta, Chavi, and Busett all in the team.
Barcelona began the season by facing their fierce rivals Real Madrid in the Super Copa de Espa ending in an exciting 2-2 draw to Santiago Bernabel and only three days later on August 17th Barcelona turned up the heat and beat Real Madrid 3-2 at camp no clinching the Super Copa with a 5-4 aggregate score and Messi shining by scoring twice including the game winner.
But the match ended up becoming super intense, especially after Marcelo’s foul on Fàregas, which sparked a brawl that led to multiple red cards. But at the end of the day, this thrilling victory was just another notch on Pep’s belt against Mourinho’s Real Madrid, setting the tone for an exciting season ahead.
Not soon after, Barcelona then claimed the UEFA Super Cup with a two-nil victory over Porto, marking Bars’s fourth Super Cup and giving Fabregas his first ever goal in a Barcelona shirt. As the league campaign began, injuries began to plague the team as nearly signed Alexis Sanchez tore his hamstring, sidelining him for weeks, while Iniesta was ruled out for a month with a femoral bicep tear.
But despite this, Messi continued to shine because after two consecutive draws, Barcelona responded emphatically with an 8n win over Osuna with a Messi hat-tick. And on the 28th of September, Barca defeated Vonte Boris off 5-nil in the Champions League with Messi’s brace bringing him level with Llo Kubala as Barcelona’s second all-time score with 194 goals.
roll on December and we witness yet another thrilling classicalico as yet again peps Barca triumph 3-1 over Real Madrid at the Baron Nebau and soon enough the club world cup in Japan brought Barcelona more silverware with a dominant 4-nil win over Santos where Messi’s brace along with goals from Chavian Fabregas saw the team clinch their fifth title of 2011.
The new year began with Pep winning FIFA coach of the year along with Messi winning his third consecutive balonour on January 9th. And soon after Barcelona eliminated Real Madrid in the Copatel race with a 2-2 draw at the camp no advancing on aggregate and making a fool out of Jose Mourinho yet again.
But this year it was Jose who would eventually get the last laugh. But more on that soon. As the season progressed, Messi was setting more records, netting five goals against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, becoming the first player to achieve such a feat in the competition’s history. However, in the league, things started to take a turn for the worse as a 2-2 draw with VRL put Barcelona seven points behind a stellar Real Madrid with Joseé gaining back his momentum.
April was a bitter month for all Barca fans as their team advanced to their fifth consecutive Champions League semi-final, but were ultimately eliminated by Chelsea, drawing 2-2 at the Campnoe in a dramatic match. And to top it all off, on the 27th of April, Guardiola announced that he would step down at the end of the season.
Just a couple weeks later, Real Madrid were crowned La Liga champions, putting an end to Pep’s domestic dominance. But Barcelona had one last chance to lift silverware that season, which they did in fact accomplish, winning the Copa del Rey final 3-nil against Atletico Madrid. It was then confirmed that Tito Villanova would be the man set to take Pep’s place as manager, but Guardiola definitely left massive shoes to fill.
After a staggering 14 trophies in four years as Barcelona’s manager, Pep left Barcelona with a heavy heart. But even though saying goodbye was tough, Pep didn’t slow down one bit as he went on to achieve great things with Bayern Munich and Manchester City, adding even more awards and trophies to his name and proving multiple times that he’s one of the greatest coaches in football history.
In just three seasons, Guardiola’s Byron won seven major trophies and broke countless records and what has been described as the most successful failure in football history. Despite winning the league in all three seasons, Guardiola arrived in a team that were treble winners and the expectations were as high as they could possibly be.
But the question is, how good was Pep’s Bayern side? Actually, how many records did they break? And can they really be considered a form of failure? This is the full story of Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich. When Guardiola announced that he’d depart Barcelona after delivering two Champions League titles and producing arguably the most devastating style of play in football history at the end of the 112 season, supporters of every club in Europe dreamed of landing the Catalin boss.
He needed a year-long sbatical to recover from the exhaustion of building the greatest team in football history. But 6 months in, he announced he was ready to reenter the dugout at the end of the season. Despite interest from both Manchester clubs, Chelsea and AC Milan, Guardiola opted for a move to the Bundesliga’s most dominant force, Bayern Munich.
It was an interesting time to join the then four-time Champions League champions. After a couple of seasons of missing out on the title to Jüken Clumps Barussia Dortmund, Bayern were recovering well and suddenly had a team littered with worldclass superstars. The likes of Manuel Neuer, Philip Lamb, Bastian Schweinsteniger, Tony Cruz, Arian Robin, Frank Ribbery, and Thomas Mueller were tearing teams apart as they reclaimed the Bundesliga under manager Yip Hankis.
Given that winning the domestic title is generally the minimum requirement for Bayern bosses, the shoes for Guardiola to fill would not have been so humongous had they not dominated Europe, too. In an all-German final at Wembley, Byron edged Dortmund 2-1 to win its fifth Champions League title, clinching an iconic treble and gaining the title of the greatest team in Europe.
So, with the greatest manager in the world joining the following season, the extent to which the German club could dominate football appeared limitless. The exar boss played an expansive ticky tacka style of football and needed technical reinforcements to ensure his passing game thrived at the Alons Arena. He signed Lamasia youngster Thiago Alcantara for €2 million euros who had featured sporadically for Guardiola at Barca.
But the new Bayern Gaffer knew he had the technical capabilities to quickly become one of the world’s best players. The emphasis on silky players that could replicate Pep’s Barza team continued as Bayern landed German wonderit Mario for 37 million euros from rivals Barussia Dortmund with two of the world’s most exciting young talents complimenting a Champions League winning side coast by a mesmerizing tactician.
Bayern were expected to blow every Bundesliga and European side away. However, Guardiola’s curtain razor was disappointing. In the France Beckenbower Super Cup, his side lost 4-2 to clubs Dortmund. And this was the first indication that Guardiola’s next great managerial battle had begun after going head-to-head with Royale boss Jose Marina for the previous few seasons.
Still, Pep and Byron dusted themselves off quickly, winning 23 of their next 25 matches, including a Super Cup triumph over Chelsea, a 41-way beating of Schula, a 7-nil thrashing of Wter Breman, a 3-nil declass, a dropping of Dortmund, and a 3-1 statement victory over Manchester City in the Champions League.
Pep’s team were playing with arrogance and a belief that they could destroy any team in world football, but they were given a reality check when the Citizens pulled off a 3-2 victory in the return Champions League group stage fixture. That didn’t stop them from walking all over almost every single Bundesliga opposition, though.
After 27 matches, Guadiola had won all but two of their league fixtures, only being halted by draws to buyer levers and Ben Hoffenheim. They held a 25-point lead over Dortmund and were crowned Bundesliga champions at the earliest day in the league’s history. The German team had found a level even they had never reached before, including matches from the previous season under Hankis.
They were 53 Bundesliga games unbeaten. With the title wrapped up before spring had even settled, attention turned to the Champions League as Bayern looked to become the first club to retain the illustrious prize since AC Milan in 1990. And they were making it look easy, too. 3-1 and 4-2 knockout victories over English heavy hitters Arsenal at Manchester United set up a blockbuster semi-final against Real Madrid.
Los Blanos’s side featured Cristiano Ronaldo, Chabi Alonzo, and Anel Di Maria. But even they were surprised when they edged the first leg at the Bernabau 1 nil. Under the gleaming lights of the Alons, there was every expectation that Guadiola’s men could turn the tie around. But the night ended in heartbreak as Madrid thrashed Bayern 4-nil thanks to braces from CR7 and Sergio Ramos.
But the season wouldn’t end in heartbreak. Having clinched the club world cup in December thanks to a two-nil victory over Raha Casablanca. Pep secured his fourth trophy of his opening Bayern campaign with a 2-nil DFB pokeal victory over Dortmund. Despite the silverware hall and records broken, some critics were slightly disappointed at the gulf in class that appeared evident between Bayern and Madrid during the Champions League semi.
After all, they thrashed an arguably superior outfit in Barcelona 7 at the same stage the previous season. Meanwhile, Bayern finished on 91 points during the 1213 season under Hikas and managed a point fewer during Guardiola’s opening campaign. So, the question arose, had the legendary Spanish boss actually improved Byron, or was their style of play just slightly more expansive? Fortunately for Pep, he’d have two more seasons to convince the Downers that he could become the greatest manager in the club’s history. But before we get to
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Okay, now back to the video. Over the summer of 2014, a Germany side containing Bayern stars such as Neuer, Lamb, Schweinsteiger, Kus, and Mueller bulldozed their way to the World Cup after beating Brazil 7-1 in the semi-final and Argentina 1- nil in the final thanks to a goal from GE. The Bayern stars superiority on the world stage highlighted the strength of the back-to-back Bundesliga champions, increasing the pressure on Guardiola to deliver the club a sixth Champions League title.
It was a golden generation of Bayern talent that could not be wasted. The Bavarians were adding to their star-studded team, too. The Bundesliga’s top goal scorer for the previous two seasons, Robert Leandowski, arrived on a free transfer from Dortmund, while Real Madrid legend Shabi Alonso joined for 9 million euros. Guardiola had already created arguably the greatest team of all time with Barcelona, and now he was threatening to do it again with Munich.
Failure to land a Champions League in the next two seasons would be disappointing. But missing out on a Bundesliga would be unthinkable. So pressure was on the Alian Arena side from match week 1. Yet just like in Pep’s first season, the campaign began with a France Beckenbower Super Cup defeat to Dortmund. Club’s men were rampant as they pressured Bayern into making careless mistakes and beat the Bundesliga champions without their former talisman Leantovski.
The season continued with remarkable similarities to the opening of 1314. Bayern didn’t lose a league game until match week 18. Beat City once and lost to them once in the Champions League group stages and scored a hatful of goals. With Leandowski leading the line, Bayern put seven past Roma, six past Vera Breman, and eight past Hamburg.
Europe had arguably never seen a side as deadly in front of goal, and no team wanted to meet Guardiola’s ruthless men in the Champions League knockouts. Shaktar donuts were the unlucky victims, but the Ukrainian side might have felt optimistic after holding Bayern to a nil nil draw during the first leg. However, the towering stands of the Aliance Arena represented a different task as they fell to a humiliating 7-nil defeat.
The Champions League quarterfinal against Porto followed a similar theme. The 2004 winners pulled off a shock 3-1 victory in the first leg before being torn apart 6-1 in the return fixture. Bayern were proving that even when they endured off days, they could recover without breaking a sweat and send teams back to their home country with their tails between their legs.
Pep’s side secured the Bundesliga after 30 games, allowing them to place all their attention on the Champions League semifinals. This time it would be an emotional camp new reunion for Guardiola as Bayern drew Barcelona in a game that journalists were dubbing the match of the decade. Barza had recovered from a minor post pep blip and developed an unstoppable attack featuring Lionel Messi, Neymar Jr. and Luis Suarez.
Yet, Guardiola’s side felt unflustered by the challenge. They proven their dominance in the Bundesliga and in Europe throughout the season and would line up in the first leg in an innovative 352 formation. Lamb would play in a fullback midfield hybrid position, beginning the trend of inverted fullbacks that’s prevalent in today’s game.
But leaving the back three so unprotected against an attack as deadly as Barces was always going to be problematic. Messi scored a truly outrageous goal humiliating Boeng in the process as the Catalin club won the first leg 3-0. Given how imperious Bayern had been at home during that season’s Champions League knockout phase, the tie still wasn’t over.
But the second leg task was seismic. Pep switched to a flat back four and won the second leg 3-2. But it wouldn’t be enough to book their place in the Champions League final. To make matters worse, Pep was out coached by Klopp again after Dortmund knocked Byron out of the DFB Pal on penalties. The season ended with five defeats in six and Guardiola side did not appear as the all powerful team that they threatened to become.
The league was clenched with just 79 points, a total that might not have been substantial enough to win the title had Dortmund performed to their potential. And Guardiola would have to deliver more than pretty passing patterns in his third season if his time at Byron was to be considered an undisputed success. During the summer of 2015, Guardiola made attempts to perfect his Bavarian side further with the 39.
5 million euro signing of Aruro Vidal, a Chilean midfielder who had shown for Juventus in Syria in previous seasons. The tough tackler was not a typical pet midfielder in the way that Shavei, Iniesta, Thiago, or Geta were, but he’d add steel and physicality to the team. In addition, 24year-old Douglas Costa arrived from Shaktodonk for €30 million to provide competition for the side’s wingers, while French wonderk kid Kingsley Khman joined on loan from Juventus.
The signings epitomized a change of tactical emphasis for Guardiola. He was evolving the team away from being overly possessionheavy and more focused on direct intent with Reber and Robin aging and struggling to maintain the blistering pace of their younger years. Pep’s new signings of Kman and Costa allowed a new type of dynamism in attack.
Meanwhile, Videll could play possession-based football, but was not considered among the greatest passers in the world. His role at Bayern would be to win the ball back and quickly move the ball forward to Bayern’s ruthless attackers. As a result, the Bavarian club’s average Buddhist League of possession dropped from 59 to 55% per match.
But would it deliver Byron a more spectacular season than the previous one? For the most part, the answer is yes. Pep’s team immediately appeared more assured after completing their annual defeat in the France Beckenbower Super Cup. Byron won their opening eight Bundesliga and two Champions League matches, scoring 34 goals in the process.
Leandowski and Mueller appeared to be enjoying their most deadly seasons in front of goal. Lev scored 12 in the opening 10 matches, including a record-breaking five-goal hall in nine minutes, while his German attacking partner found the back of the net on 10 occasions. Byron eventually suffered a surprise Champions League group stage defeat to Arsenal, but quieted the boastful Gunners after hammering them 5-1 at the Alons a few weeks later.
By the time that Bundesliga briefly paused for the winter break, Pep’s team was already eight points clear at the top with a mouthwatering goal difference of plus 37. While judging Bard’s Champions League credentials by their Bundesliga of form is always challenging, many were tipping the Catalan boss to get his hands on the glistening 29-in trophy for the first time since 2011.
But speculation emerged that Guardiola might not be entirely focused on the Aliance Arena Club as news broke that he’d take over Manchester City at the end of the season. Luckily, there was not a strong feeling of animosity among Bayern supporters. After all, he had delivered back-to-back Bundesliga titles and produced record-breaking numbers.
But there was a growing feeling that to become an undoubtable success in Germany, he’d have to deliver the goods during his final months at the club. To be written into the club’s folklore, Guardiola would need to complete what Hankis did before him, winning an iconic treble, including the Champions League. However, it was not immediately apparent that Guardiola would deliver his most devastating title yet.
Byron won just five of their first eight Bundesliga matches of 2016 and were held to a two- two draw in the Champions League round of 16 first leg against Juventus. Pep’s side edged past the old lady in the second leg with a 4-2 victory after extra time, but it did not feel convincing. By were scoring goals, as they had done in the early rounds of the previous two Champions League campaigns, but concerns about their defensive fragilities persisted.
Many supporters were eager to avoid a resounding defeat to Spanish opposition in the tournament’s final four for a third-year running, and Byron were feeling the pressure. They edged past Benfica in the quarterfinals with a 3-2 aggregate victory and reached a fourth consecutive Champions League semi-final for the first time in their history.
Three of the four Champions League semi-final runs were overseen by Guardiola, proving he’d built the most consistently competitive side in Bayern’s history. But judging whether his team would be considered among the greatest teams of all time would hinge on winning the Champions League that season. They avoided facing Barcelona or Real Madrid in the semi-finals, both of whom had humiliated Pepside in the previous two seasons.
Instead, it was a date with the third team in Spanish football, Atletico Madrid. Simeone’s Atleti team won La Liga and reached the Champions League final in 2014, but few expected that they’d have the strength to beat Pep star-studded Bayern in the 2016 semis. Unusually, Byron had not wrapped up the Bundesliga by the time of the time with Atletico with Dortmund still maintaining an outside chance of domestic glory.
So, Bayern traveled to Madrid for the first leg with their hearts pounding, knowing that Pep’s legacy in Munich was on the line. But Atletico frustrated Bayern and snatched a one-nil win thanks to a goal from Salo Niguz. Crucially, Pep’s team failed to score an away goal, meaning that Bayern would need to win by a two-goal advantage or keep a clean sheet in the second leg to reach the final.
So Byron charged at Atletico’s goal during the return fixture, registering 34 shots and missing a penalty from Thomas Müah. They netted with goals from Chab Alonso and Robert Leandowski, but a strike from Antoine Griezmann meant the tide finished two- all with Bayern heartbreakingly crashing out on away goals.
The Bavarian side had done enough over the two legs to be deserving of a place in the final, but Pep’s tenure at Bayern would end without the star-studded outfit even reaching the final. His side had been outdone by Spanish sides in each of his three Byron years, and dreams of lifting number six for Byron had been crushed. But it wouldn’t be all doom and gloom.
Byron won the 15-16 Bundesliga with 88 points and lifted the TFB Pal after beating Dortmund on penalties. The season’s ending was symbolic of Pep’s time at Bayern. In just three seasons, the Catalin lifted seven major titles, the joint second most of any manager in the club’s post-war history. It was a period where winning and winning comfortably became so normalized that lifting the Champions League felt like a given.
Pep’s time at Bayern remains memorable for his 82 victories in 102 Bundesliga matches, giving the Catalan boss the league’s highest win percentage of managers to compete at 50 plus matches. In addition to his three Bundesliga triumphs, Guardiola lifted the TFP call twice along with the club world cup and Super Cup.
Many of Pep’s stars won the Champions League the season before he arrived and the World Cup in the summer that followed his first campaign. But few of them would suggest that the legendary manager’s time in Bayern was anything other than a success. Legends like Thiago, Milo, Leandowski, and Alonzo have named Guardiola among the greatest influences of their careers.
While fans witnessed goals flying in, trophies being lifted, and records being shattered in each season, which just leaves the question with you. Was Pep’s buyer a success or a failure? In 2016, Manchester City got knocked out of the Champions League, the FA Cup, and just about scraped a fourth place finish in the Premier League.
But over the course of the next 8 years, everything changed as they would go on to win 19 major trophies in the most dominant way possible as they broke record after record, changing the way football is played forever. But for all of this to happen, they needed a genius manager capable of leading this team to glory. And that is exactly what Pep Guardiola did.
But how did this all happen? How did Pep move to the hardest league in world football and turn it into his playground? Well, for us to understand this, we have to go back to 2008, which is the exact moment Manchester City’s trajectory as a football club changed forever. On the 23rd of September 2008, Manchester City Football Club was purchased by Abu Dhabi billionaire Shake Mansour and overnight, hope started to brew in the blue side of Manchester.
Fans had watched Chelsea transform from mid-table mediocrity to one of Europe’s most deadly forces after a similar multi-million pound takeover and the possibility circulated that another superpower had landed in England. Suddenly overthrowing United as the Premier League’s most dominant club became City’s sole ambition and the club’s newfound wealth enabled the East Manchester club to secure the signings of elite talents Sergio Aguero, Yaya Toué, David Sia and Vincent company.
So, it wasn’t long before this exciting young side dramatically won their first Premier League title in 2012 in the final minutes of the season. Back to Balotelli. IT RUNS FOR AERO. THEY DO IT. City win the title. It’s Aerero for his 30th goal of the season. >> Despite City’s exuberant yearly spending, managers would struggle to consistently get the best out of one of the world’s most talented teams.
Ellie Kim Mangala, Wilfred Bony, and Raheem Sterling all arrived at the Eddi head for large transfer fees, but City only won one of the following four Premier League titles as they struggled to build the dynasty that Manchester United had done under Sir Alex. And the club fared no better in the Champions League, embarrassing themselves with frequent group stage exits or getting humiliated by Barcelona and Real Madrid in the early knockout rounds.
Come the 1516 season and City had struggled suffering big defeats to Liverpool, Leicester and Tottenham and the thought that City could become the Premier League’s dominant force began to ease until whispers that a Catalin tactical genius might step into the dugout emerged. You see, Pep Guardiola’s tickaka football at Barcelona and Bayern Munich was breathtaking as the young manager won the league title in all but one of his seven seasons in La Liga and the Bundesliga.
Not to mention already having two Champions League trophies to his name. So after announcing he’d leave Byron, the manager had every elite club dreaming of landing his signature. And as City struggled under manager Manuel Pelleigrini, it was announced in February 2016 that Guardiola would take over as City boss at the end of the season.
That was a sensational move that wasn’t supposed to happen. Europe’s traditional elite, Man United, AC Milan, and Barcelona were convinced the superstar manager would favor a move to pre-existing football dynasty, but Guardiola decided to build one instead. And from this moment onwards, football would never be the same. Guardiola arrived in Manchester at a time of Premier League change because overnight it had become box office as Jose Mourinho had recently been appointed as Man United boss and the pair had history.
During the latter stages of Guardiola’s glorious Barcelona days, Mourinho took the helmet Eláico rivals Real Madrid and snatched a title off Pep, ending a period of dominance that appeared as if it would go on forever. The matches between Guardiola and Mourinho were filled with drama, fallout, and lodging tackles. So, supporters around the world waited to see the two managerial geniuses lock horns again in Manchester.
But Jose wasn’t the only nemesis Guardiola would meet again in England. Because between 2013 and 2016, Guardiola was making light work of the Bundesliga, leading Bayern Munich to three back-to- back titles. But there was one man who somehow knew how to stop Guardiola. Jurgen Klopp, the towering tactician, managed Barusia Dortmund while Pep was in Germany and masterminded 4-2, 3-nil, and 2-nil victories against the seemingly unbeatable Bayern Munich manager.
Club’s intense gagan pressing football suffocated Guardiola’s passing game and proved that the great manager had vulnerabilities and could be beaten by sides who didn’t have the same financial power. And to the world’s delight, the rivalry would continue in the Premier League as several months earlier, Klo had been appointed as Liverpool’s boss with a fierce promise to return the copites to their former glory.
So if Guardiola was going to lift his first Premier League title, he’d have to overcome his two toughest managerial opponents ever faced. Now, despite Pep’s pedigree walking into the Premier League, many pundits doubted whether Guardiola’s football could succeed in the face of such aggressive competition on tricky away grounds like Stoke, especially if it was rainy.
And for the first year, they would be proven right as this Man’s City team was not exactly set up to play beautiful passing football and he had some work to do. Between the sticks was Joe Hart, an English international goalkeeper who was as prolific as anyone in world football at saving shots. But there was a problem.
The legendary city keeper could barely play with the ball at his feet and Pep wanted a ball player like Manuel Neuer was. So he signed Clauddio Bravo. In defense, Vincent company fit into Pep’s vision, but that was about it, prompting him to drop 55 million on J Stones to form a center back partnership to last years.
He also sighed talents who’d impressed him during his time in the Bundesliga, such as Dortund’s Ilk Kaundogan for 27 million and Shaka’s Leroy Sane for 52 million, creating the first steps at building a team that could play Guardiola’s expansive style of football. Besides the signings, he walked into a team flowing with talent up front.
Agüero, De Bruyne, and Silva to name a few meant that Pep was not lacking firepower. They just needed to be taught his system. So with a team of stars and a total summer transfer spend exceeding 171 million euros, could Guardiola replicate the glory of his Barcelona and Bayern Munich teams in the toughest league in the world? Guardiola’s Man City began their journey as they hosted in the Premier League on the starting date with a starting lineup that hardly looked like an outfit that would dominate the division for the following decade. Willie Cababayro
started between the sticks and Guile Clichi, Alexander Kolarov, Jston Stones and Bakarisa completed a shaky looking defensive structure. Many believed City’s hopes were reliant on their exciting midfield and attack which featured Fernandinho, Kevin De Bruyne, David Sila, and Sergio Aguero. Despite the imperfect starting lineup, City edged Sunderland 2-1 before following their opening day victory with another five back-to back wins, including a 2-1 triumph against arch rival Mourinho.
Things were looking good for Guardiola until October arrived and he entered arguably his toughest two-month managerial spell to date. City traveled to Tottenham, sitting top of the Premier League, feeling dismissive of their Whiteart Lane opposition. But Dela Alli inspired the London club to a two-nil victory and City rarely threatened throughout the 90 minutes.
Guardiola then suffered frustrating one- all draws against Everton, Southampton, and Sunderland in three of his next four Premier League matches before his former side Barcelona destroyed City 4-nil in the Champions League. As Messi bagged a hat-tick and reminded Pep of the superstars of his former team, he must have felt his current city side was a million miles away from dominating Europe.
Guardiola was quickly learning the relentless nature of football in England and her 2017 with his team in fifth position. To make matters worse, the boss had lost to his longtime rival Jose Mourinho in the League Cup. And with City out of the domestic cup and languishing outside the Champions League qualification places, pressure was beginning to build.
A couple of weeks later, City were beaten 4-nil by Everton. And with Guardiola’s first season in England threatening to unravel, he had to react by signing Gabrielle Jesus in January, who was an exciting Brazilian youngster who’d been compared to R9 to add flare to City’s attack. The 20-year-old striker produced three goal involvements in his first two starts, but City’s form continued to be mixed.
While the Citizens were routinely seeing off the Premier League’s lesser teams, City were held to Premier League draws against Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal, and Man United, and were beaten by Chelsea, who were the eventual champions, finishing 15 points ahead of Guardiola’s side. City were knocked out of the FA Cup semi-finals by Arsenal and suffered a shock round of 16 Champions League exit against a Monaco side containing Kian Mbappe, Bernardo Silva, Fabinho, and Benjamin Mendee.
And just like that, Guardiola ended his first season in England trophyless. But this was perhaps the most important year of his entire career. Now he knew the holes he had in the squad. He finally adjusted to the Premier League. And with a big summer ahead, everything was about to change.
City’s Mega Ridge board was willing to back the manager, giving him millions to spend on talents to make Guardiola’s team a serious threat. He started their summer spending by signing Tottenham’s electric right back Kyle Walker for 52 million. He then went to Monaco to raid their young team of stars, picking up Ben Mendy for60 million and Bernardo Silva for 40 million.
But the spending didn’t stop there. Guardiola signed Brazilian goalkeeper Ederson for 40 million from Benfica. The shots stopper played like Norer with the ball at his feet and it finally looked like Guadiola’s team would finally be able to build up in possession in the way the City boss dreamed of. Pep ended the summer signings with one final center back in Eric Leaport from Athletic Club for a jaw-dropping 65 million adding up to a total of €250 million spent for the summer.
And now with almost half a billion spent in two seasons, this was do or die for Pat. The owners, the media, and the fans were going to settle for nothing short of success. But little did they know the extent to which success was going to be coming their way. As City’s 1718 season got underway, Guardiola’s team were noticeably different.
During an opening day Premier League victory over Brighton, the Citizens started in a 532 formation with Walker and Danilo providing width from the wing back positions. The speed and shape they gave to City contrasted with their fullbacks the previous season who were solid but fairly conservative. Guardiola’s tactical switch enabled City to push six players forward during attacks.
A move that proved to be deadly. City were second in the table by match day four when they battered Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool 5-nil, emphatically demonstrating that City’s summer signings would help them to beat the big boys this time around. And the real statement victory came a couple of weeks later as City edged Premier League champions Chelsea 2-nil.
The Citizens would go on an incredible record-breaking run of 18 straight wins, including thrashing Crystal Palace 6-nil, Watford 5-nil, Stoke 72, and Tottenham 4-1, as well as seeing off Arsenal 3-1 and Man United 2-nil. As yet again, Pep was getting the better of Jose. By the turn of the new year, City had already beaten every big six club and had scored 63 league goals in just 20 matches.
But if there was a manager who could bring Guardiola back down to earth, it was Jüken Klo. And City traveled to Anfield brimming with confidence, but left with scars that would haunt them throughout the remainder of Guardiola’s time in England. Klopp’s Liverpool side were as relentless, energetic, and clinical as the Dortmund side that punctured Pep’s Byron so frequently as they gan pressed their way to a 4-3 victory in front of a rampant Anfield crowd.
And while the Premier League fixture did not impact the title race, it did create a psychological wound that damaged Guardiola as the two teams met again in the quarterfinals of the Champions League. City were favorites to win the tournament and Pep was desperate to deliver the trophy that had evaded him. If Anfield was electric during their Premier League contest a few months earlier, it was volcanic when the sides met in the Champions League.
Supporters created a hostile environment before the City players had even stepped off the bus as Chance, Flares, and even bottles were directed at the team’s bus. City stepped onto the storied Anfield pitch, evidently shaken as they were smashed 3-0 by Klopp’s team and then 2-1 in the second leg, meaning the European dream was cut short.
This would be a common theme through Pep’s time in England as it was the only trophy missing in the Manchester City cabinet. So, it would mean oh so much to them. But domestically, I can’t say anyone in blue was complaining. They won 12 of their final 15 Premier League games as they lifted the title, having accumulated an unprecedented 100 points, scored a record-breaking 106 goals, and finished with a goal difference of plus 79, which was the greatest of any team in the division’s history.
Having won the League Cup with a 3-nil victory over Arsenal a few months earlier, the double-inning season had been an undisputed success, and concerns that Guardiola’s football would not translate to the English game were vanquished. But Pep was hungry for more. He couldn’t rest until City had created an empire that made the club the most successful English side of the modern era.
And with Liverpool showing signs of strengthening, he knew his team would have to be even better to get their hands on the Premier League or Champions League in 1819. During 1718, Guardiola redefined the way football was being played in England. As his city team passed out from the back, operated in tight spaces, and finished teams off inside the box, many managers across the Premier League and further down the football pyramid attempted to emulate this style.
But as rival managers tried to recreate Guardiola’s tactics, the Catalin manager continued to evolve and find new ways of playing. During the summer of 2018, he signed Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez for 67.8 million euros. And while it may have been tempting to stick with the power and pace of wingers Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane, the Algerian addition offered something different.
He was slow and more controlled, silky and elegant on the ball. He liked the ball to come to feet rather than running it behind. The signing coincided with the integration of Phil Foden, a youth player Guardiola described as the most talented I have ever seen. The duo proved to be pivotal as City were forced to find new ways to break down teams sitting deep in a low block.
The Citizens started the season in spectacular fashion, winning 13 and drawing two of their opening 15 fixtures. Their early form was enough to have one hand on the trophy in most other Premier League seasons. Yet, Guardiola side still only had a two-point lead over Liverpool. City once again failed to beat Klo and Liverpool at Anfield as the title challenging duo were held to a nil nil draw in October and a feeling intensified that if City were to beat their almost faultless mercy side opposition to the title, they’d have to beat them in a
head-to-head match at the Eddiad. The pressure grew on City in the weeks heading up to the clash being dubbed as the Premier League final, especially after shock defeats to Chelsea, Palace, and Leicester gave Liverpool a seven-point lead before the pair met in early January 2019 in what was arguably the highest quality game in Premier League history.
City edged a 2-1 victory over Liverpool by the tiniest of margins. A famous goal line clearance by J Stones prevented the Copites from coming away with a point. And had the ball traveled a single spin further, Liverpool would be heading back to Anfield with the title nearly won. But City’s victory blew the race wide open. And they were sure not to waste their lifeline.
Guardiola’s men won all but one of their final 17 Premier League matches to somehow finish the season on 98 points and beat one of the greatest teams in top flight English history to the title by a single point. However, the battle for English at European supremacy between Guardiola and Klo wasn’t over. City were knocked out of the Champions League quarterfinals by Tottenham in one of the most dramatic games the tournament had ever seen.
while Klo lifted Liverpool’s sixth European Cup, meaning Pep had now gone backto back in England, but still could not break down the European door. Also, this season saw Jose Mourinho get the sack at Manchester United, meaning that old rivalry was very much put to bed as it was all about Klo now.
And City’s rivalry with Liverpool continued to heat up the following season because despite the summer signings of Joel Canelo and Rodri, City started the season below their usual standards, suffering shock defeats to Norwich and Wolves. When Guardiola traveled to his nightmare battleground of Anfield 12 games into the season, City were already eight points behind Liverpool.
After a 3-1 defeat in which the reigning Premier League champions barely laid a glove on Liverpool, Klopp’s team were already 11 points clear and the title became out of reach. It was clear that despite city superiority over the previous two seasons, the Citizens were no longer England or Europe’s best and Guardiola would have to go back to the drawing board to regain dominance.
The coid9 disturbed 1920 season ended with City as winners of the League Cup thanks to a 2-1 victory over Aston Villa, but ultimately unsatisfied. They finished 18 points behind Liverpool in the Premier League, were knocked out by Leon in the quarterfinals of the Champions League, and lost in the semifinals of the FA Cup against Arsenal.
For a team and manager that were so accustomed to winning, the season was simply not good enough. So, Guardiola did what he knew best and reinvented his team to align with his ever evolving tactics. He signed defenders Ruben Diaz from Benfica for €71 million and Nathan Aki from Bournemouth for 45 million to add assurance to a backline that had been exposed too frequently in the previous season.
However, City’s form continued to stutter. They dropped points against Leicester, Leadeds, West Ham, Liverpool, and Tottenham during the opening 10 games of the 2021 season. And many began to question whether Guardiola’s tactics had run their course in the Premier League. But the shaky early season wasn’t a sign of the beginning of the end for Guardiola at City, but rather the beginning of a new chapter and a new way of playing.
Joel Canelo and Zenchenko were deployed as inverted fullbacks, allowing City to play with an extra man pulling the strings in midfield or protecting the central defenders out of possession. Rodri became imperious from defensive midfield and controlled matches with technique and simplicity in a way the Premier League had never seen before.
Meanwhile, Ruben Diaz’s leadership and ball playing ability elevated JS Stones’s game up to a different level as City finally embodied Guardiola’s vision. It was a tactical shift partly driven by a desire to regain the Premier League title, but largely to see City over the line in crucial Champions League matches where they’d conceded too many goals to Monaco, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Leyon in the previous seasons.
Guardiola’s plan was genius. City won 19 of 21 Premier League fixtures between December and May to lift the title without a clear competitor. They strolled past Arsenal, Man United, and Tottenham to win the League Cup and beat Dortmund and PSG on their way to a first Champions League final where they’d meet Chelsea. It was the moment the entire Shake Mansour project had been leading up to, but the 2021 Champions League final did not go as expected.
City were overwhelming favorites going into the final showdown with Chelsea, but they’d been defeated by Tuhill’s resurgent side twice in the final weeks of the season. Lingering doubts emerged as City’s lack of dominance in the two matches caused Guardiola to overthink that he started the game without his everpresent defensive midfielder Rodri.
The Spaniard’s absence prevented the Citizens from controlling the game and they crumbled to a shock 1-nil defeat. Almost unthinkably, the Champions League dream was forced to wait another season. With City’s new system looking untouchable in the Premier League, domestic glory wouldn’t be good enough to satisfy Shake Mansour, Guardiola, or the supporters.
The following season, the entire club was on its knees, begging for a Champions League triumph. Still, they picked up yet another Premier League, returning themselves to the top of English football, finishing well clear of second place Manchester United, making it three titles in 5 years in England for the Citizens. As we headed to the 21-22 season, people were just expecting City to win yet another title, and they routinely saw off Premier League opposition each weekend.
So attention diverted to the Champions League. PSG, RB Leipig, and Clue Bruge were ruthlessly dispatched in the group stages before City put Sporting CP to the sword in the round of 16. But a tougher ask would await them in the quarterfinals as they faced Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid. The resolute, defensively minded Spanish club shocked Europe when they knocked prime Liverpool out of the Champions League two years earlier, and they’d won La Liga the year before.
Simeone’s team parked the bus and rattled Guardiola’s side in a style so emphatic it would make Mourinho blush. But De Bruina found a way through as City edged a 1-nil aggregate win. With Liverpool resurgent in the Premier League and pushing in the FA Cup and Champions League, the end of the season seemed to be defined by another Klopp versus Guardiola battle.
In fact, the football world dreamed of Champions League and FA Cup finals featuring the two titan managers. But City would have to overcome a tough task against Real Madrid in a European semi-final first. City entered the semi-final as clear favorites and were confident it might finally be their year to lift the European Cup.
And initially it seemed like that would be the case as goals from De Bruina Bench Jesus gave City an early 2-nil advantage in the first leg. But City lost their crucial two-goal advantage and the game finished 4-3, meaning City would travel to the imposing Bernabu Stadium with a tie far from complete. Once again, City took the lead, this time through an early Mahrez strike.
But unlike the first leg, Guardiola side controlled the game through Rodri, Canelo, and Diaz’s brilliance and looked set to meet Liverpool in the final of the Champions League. With 90 minutes on the clock, the tie appeared to be dead and buried. But then something crazy happened. Rodrigo scored a right-footed effort that should have been no more than a stoppage time consolation goal, but panic swept across Guardiola’s men.
The Brazilian winger added a second with his head moments later, completing an unimaginable comeback and sending the game into extra time. And with City deflated, the tie was only going in one direction. Benzema scored a penalty in extra time to send City crashing out of the Champions League, questioning how and why they’d let almost guaranteed success slip through their fingertips once again.
Luckily, City beat Liverpool to the Premier League title by a single point once again after completing a dramatic final day comeback against Aston Villa, but lost to their Northwest opposition in the semi-finals of the FA Cup. Despite another year of Premier League success, the agony, hunger, and desperation for Champions League glory wasn’t going away.
As the mad genius had done so many times before, Guardiola returned to the lab, desperately trying to find the answers for Champions League success. While he’d strengthened City’s defense and given his team more control, they hadn’t had an elite outand-out striker since the days of prime Sergio Aguero.
So, Pep decided to sign towering Norwegian goal machine Erling Holland. The 6’5 striker was undoubtedly the world’s most exciting young forward, having scored 62 Bundesliga goals in 67 appearances for Dortmund. But despite his impressive resume, many question whether the striker would suit Guardiola’s system. During his blistering form at Dortmund, the striker would complete 60-yard sprints, run in behind defenses, and terrify goalkeepers with his deadly one-on-one finishing.
With Premier League and European opposition typically sitting deep against Guadiola’s side, it was unclear whether his electric style would fit City’s buildup. But nobody was doubting the Norwegian by gameweek 13, as Holland had already notched 17 times in the Premier League along with five goals in his first three Champions League matches.
Like so many years before, City was astonishing. Yet, in their recently adopted 3421 formation, something was different. Jon Stone stepped out from defense and dictated games like a Spanish midfielder. Bernardo Silva, Phil Fodin, Jack Greish, Ilk Kai Gondogan, and Rodri worked tirelessly for the team in the middle of the pitch.
And Holland ruthlessly finished teams off from inside the box on nervy Champions League nights when City had so often looked flustered before they tore apart Bayern Munich and Real Madrid with 4-1 and 5-1 thrashings in the quarter and semi-finals before meeting Inter Milan in the final. City had already secured the FA Cup, having beaten local rivals United in the final and broken North London hearts after completing a late comeback to snatch their third back-to- back title.
They now reached a point where a Champions League triumph would complete the treble and fulfill a decadel long ambition of building a dynasty that matches the legacy of Sir Alex Ferguson’s United, the only previous English club to do this. And this time, the final went as expected. Guardiola had learned from his mistakes of previous years and selected a familiar lineup.
City edged past Inter Milan 1- nil to win their first Champions League trophy and complete an iconic treble thanks to a glorious strike from Rodri. >> The ball in Bernardo Silva. Tight angle pulls it back. Coming onto it now to shoot. Score. Rodri. Manchester City lead in the Champions League final. >> It seemed as if the battle had finally been won.
The Catalin’s old rival, Mourinho, was nowhere to be seen. Klopp was on the decline and United were out of the picture. In fact, there was a feeling City’s five Premier League titles in seven years under Guardiola could quickly turn into eight in 10, putting United’s legacy as England’s most successful club of the modern era under serious doubt.
And the following season, City broke history once again, becoming the first club to ever win four back-to-back Premier League titles and prompting complaints from rival supporters and media pundits that Guardiola had turned the English top flight into an uncompetitive, embarrassing farmers league. It was at this moment that Guardiola knew he had done the impossible.
When he arrived in England, neutrals doubted whether the Catalin style could outsmart even the division’s less established sides like Stoke City. But after 9 years at the helm, he’d made the same critics question the competitiveness of the league they swore he’d be unable to conquer. And now after a disappointing 24-25 season, Guadiola’s team looks ready to redefine the beautiful game once again and further establish their legacy against the ever diminishing shadows of rivals Man United.
But will Pep really be able to rival Sir Alex Ferguson’s legacy? You should watch this story of Ferguson’s United to make up your own mind and subscribe.
Disclaimer : This content may be created by AI for entertainment purposes. Any resemblance to real persons, events, or places is coincidental.
