Pep Guardiola: Has The Manchester City Boss FAILED During His Spell In England’s Elite?
Pep Guardiola is widely considered as one of the greatest managers ever to grace the beautiful game. His revolutionary disciplined and aggressive style of play has created teams feared around the continent during his tenure. Few managers have dominated the global stage quite like he has, with 27 major trophies accounted for across spells with Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City - only his harshest critique would not give him the credit he rightfully deserves.
However, as Pep enters his fifth season in charge of Manchester City, would it be fair to say he has not lived up to expectations during his time with the Citizens? Have his innovative tactics finally been trumped? Most importantly, is Pep Guardiola a failure as a Manchester City manager?
Pep joined Manchester City in 2016 after Manuel Pellegrini delivered a lacklustre performance by City’s standards guiding them to a 4th place Premier League finish (enough to finish above their arch-rivals Manchester United), silverware in the League Cup. After narrowly missing out on a place in the Champions League final, at the end of the season it was clear to fans of football that the City hierarchy strived for the very best, hiring Pep to become the new Manchester City manager. In hindsight, we can establish that Pep’s debut season was primarily a season for adaption as City endured a trophy-less campaign, a feat rare during Sheikh Mansour’s ownership. However, with a place in the Champions league guaranteed for the upcoming season, there were minimal complaints from the blue side of Manchester. Fans accepted that Pep's transformation of the club would take time. Throughout the next two seasons, the fans patience was rewarded.
Pep’s first season allowed him to figure out the positions of weakness in the squad he inherited from Manuel Pellegrini. He quickly addressed these issues spending £213.8m during the 2017 transfer window. Pep had the backing of the fans, and the City hierarchy, all that was left for him to do was perform on the pitch.
The 2017/18 season was the year of ‘The Centurions’ as Pep managed City to a Premier League title with a record-breaking 100 points. For perspective, the maximum points that can be attainted during a Premier League season is 114 points. Statistically at least, City’s centurion team were undeniably the most dominant and feared side to ever play in the Premier League. Records upon records continued to be broken and few could dispute that Pep made a team which domestically eclipsed the likes of Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles’ team and the 1999 Manchester United treble-winning team.
Going into the 2018/19 season questions were asked as to whether Pep and Manchester City could maintain similar levels of performance and motivation displayed during 17/18 season. The answer to those questions was yes! As City won the league, accumulating 98 points. An argument could be made that the 98-point winning season was more impressive than the previous campaign. City had red-hot chasers (Liverpool) on their tail; a side hungry to win their first Premier League crown. Despite this period of domination domestically, Manchester City was still absent from European success. They never realistically challenged for the Champions League after surprise exits to Liverpool in 17/18 and Tottenham in 18/19 at the quarter-finals, potentially highlighting City’s complacency in the competition.
A combination of the departure of club captain and legend Vincent Kompany (four-time Premier League winner) and untimely injuries to City's best players, impacted the high levels of performance that fans became accustomed to. As the 2019/20 season as saw City finish in second place, 18 points behind Champions Liverpool.
As we fast forward to today, the self-proclaimed 'Exceptional One' is hunting for revenge in the 2020/21 season. Still, results may be far more challenging to attain. Pep Guardiola has never been in charge of a club for five seasons. So pundits and journalists alike have every right to question his managerial expertise at 'rebuilding' a team. Especially a team that can still challenge for the title or the far more glamorous Champions League trophy. His tenures at Barcelona and Bayern Munich have inherited success, which he managed to continue. Both teams were indisputably one of the most powerful clubs in the world during his managerial spell there. But as he only spent four years with Barça and three with the Bavarians, a 'rebuild' was never necessary. Could this be a 'get-out-of-jail-free-card' to mask his one weakness in managing a football club?
Over the course of the 19/20 season, Pep's tactics and the desire of the City players were questioned - something that may not have happened had Kompany still been at the club. Without the leading and dominating presence of Kompany in the dressing room, City lacked rhythm and consistency on the pitch. History could yet repeat itself for the upcoming 2020/21 season with the departure of another club legend David Silva. It is almost as if Pep is oblivious to the fact that this squad can, at times, be rudderless. The team needs an iconic and respected member on the pitch to help the team push through the gritty games. In the absence of Kompany, City dropped points to the likes of Norwich, Crystal Palace and Newcastle, teams they are expected to beat. So, it is no surprise to see a reoccurrence of this in the forthcoming season. So far Guardiola’s men have been subject to utter humiliation in their backyard against Leicester in a 5-2 defeat. Manchester City has recruited just two players in the build-up to the new season – unestablished winger, Ferran Torres and Nathan Ake from relegated Bournemouth.
These recruitments do not seem to strike as much fear into sides as a Manchester City team should do, and it is increasingly discouraging for the future. City has a combined mean average squad age of 27. In comparison to Liverpool's 26.1 and a new-look Chelsea's 25.4 (who have spent in excess of £200 million in players this summer), it may prove difficult for the Citizens and Pep, in particular, to 'rebuild' a team worthy of realistically challenging for significant trophies again this season.
So, is Pep Guardiola a failure at Manchester City? I believe so. Before his arrival, Manchester City had already won it all with just one glistening trophy away from total dominance – the Champions League. Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini were both been sacked for their failure to win Europe's most prestigious prize. The recruitment of Pep was primarily (if not solely) to win the Champions League.
Although he has astonishingly led Manchester City to the two most successful domestic football campaigns this country has ever seen, I don’t believe it was in the Manchester City hierarchy’s interest to break more records. It was, and still is, to win the Champions League. Unfortunately for Pep, the fact of the matter is he has never even got close. As mentioned before, complacency at the biggest stage must be the sole reason for this.
Bayern legend, Lothar Matthaus, has recently slammed Pep for being ‘egotistical’ and that he has ‘failed again and again’. It is likely that the retired midfielder has never rated Guardiola highly as a coach due to his failure to win the Champions League with Bayern. Yet, his immediate predecessor and latter successor have managed to do so. Quarter-final defeats to Liverpool, Tottenham and Lyon in back-to-back-to-back seasons is what has sparked Matthaus’s outrage. And To be frank, it is nothing short of embarrassing to a club of Manchester City’s standing. The harsh truth is that Pep Guardiola has, ultimately, failed as their manager.
This will almost certainly be his last season in the sky blue of Manchester City. All the fans desire that one trophy and they have been mocked season after season for their inability to muster up a serious challenge for it in the last four seasons. If he fails yet again, Manchester City will be forced to look for a new manager. Pep Guardiola is not a man who is renowned for having the patience to wait around at clubs. But if he succeeds, it will mark a perfect moment for the Catalan to bow out at the club, where he will most certainly be considered a legend. It is logical to assume that he has set himself a personal challenge to win a domestic title at all of Europe's top 5 leagues; so a period with the Old Lady (Juventus) seems increasingly appealing.
Written by Olly Howard
I am currently studying English Language and English Literature as an undergraduate and am planning to study Sports Journalism at university. I am an avid watcher of all sports and a big Tottenham Hotspur fan.