Pep Guardiola's failures would be a tickertape parade for most other coaches. That the F word is even used in conjunction with him says more about modern-day journalism than it does about any lacunae in his methods
Pep Guardiola led Man City to their first win over Barca in six attempts during their Champions League clash on Tuesday. Pic/Getty Images
Pep Guardiola's failures would be a tickertape parade for most other coaches. That the F word is even used in conjunction with him says more about modern-day journalism than it does about any lacunae in his methods. In four seasons with Barcelona and three with Bayern Munich, Guardiola won six league titles. The one time he failed to win La Liga, in 2011-12, Barcelona finished with 28 wins and just three losses in the 38-game season."
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That season of 'failure' also saw the Catalans win the Spanish Cup and the Club World Cup.
Perhaps the tipping point for Guardiola's exit from the club was the 2-3 aggregate reverse to Chelsea in the semi-final of the Champions League. In four seasons at the Camp Nou he won the biggest trophy in club football twice. The other two seasons were marked by semi-final exits.
Unfair criticism
Of course, the criticism of his time at both Barcelona and Bayern was based on the fact that he didn't have to do the sort of rebuilding job. Again, that is being economical with the truth. Barcelona had won the Champions League in 2006, but by the time Frank Rijkaard left, they were a club in disarray. They finished third in La Liga in 2007-08, a whopping 18 points behind Real Madrid. Even Villarreal finished ten points in front.
At Bayern, Guardiola was on a hiding to nothing. Jupp Heynckes had enjoyed a fairytale final season, winning the treble, but he left behind a squad whose biggest stars – Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben – were becoming increasingly injury-prone.
In three seasons there, Guardiola lost just nine league matches. He won the German Cup twice, and reached the semi-final of the Champions League in every season. At City, even with the funds made available from Abu Dhabi, the task seems altogether more complex. The rot within the City squad was evident last season when the team finished fourth. With the exception of David Silva, who is already 30, Kevin de Bruyne and Raheem Sterling there are few players to build a team around. Sergio Aguero, too, initially looked ill equipped to cope with the pass-and-press game that the Pep wants.
But more than creativity, what City lack is solidity. With Vincent Kompany, once such a dominant centre back, now struggling with injury, there is no commanding presence at the back. John Stones has been highly rated for years, but is also prone to mistakes.
Restoring confidence
Having beaten off competition to get their man, City are not going to give up on Guardiola any time soon. And the Champions League triumph against Barcelona (3-1) has done much to restore confidence. But unlike his previous jobs, City require root-and-branch regeneration. How Guardiola deals with that could well define his coaching legacy.
Dileep Premachandran is Wisden India's editor-in-chief
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