Pep should help Man City push for Euro dominance
Celebrated coach Guardiola has been signed by Man City. AFP Photo
What you need to know:
BAD SIDE.
His might be a charmed managerial life, packed with ready-made teams who carry him to glory with just a bit of tinkering, and so far he has managed two dominant teams in countries where the title race is restricted to two sides.
Last week, Manchester City confirmed what has been the worst-kept secret in football for months – Pep Guardiola, would be taking over for a minimum of three years, much to the terror of the English footballs’ elite.
As coups go, this was major. To start with, Manchester City have landed themselves the most sought after manager in the world at a time when many giants seem to be lurching from one managerial crisis to another. Secondly, he comes armed with an enviable record of success; the kind of success that Manchester City and all its investments yearn for.
Pep Guardiola, ex-deep lying playmaker of immense vision and technical ability and now triple-A rated manager, averaging three trophies per season over the last six years of his nascent career, is a certified winner if any ever existed. Not even Jose Mourinho comes close. His might be a charmed managerial life, packed with ready-made teams who carry him to glory with just a bit of tinkering, and so far he has managed two dominant teams in countries where the title race is restricted to two sides.
True as all of that might be, it does n0t negate the fact that he has created and left an indelible mark on both Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Thierry Henry, a former player, says his main principles are the 3P’s of Play, Possession and Position - the most important of which is position.
He is known to place cones to cut off the final third in training as he drills into his team what must never be compromised in the first two-thirds. According to him, everyone must know where they stand in the first two thirds. It is in the final third that they get freedom. His job he says is to get his players to the final third.
Henry once disobeyed him and played outside instructions by switching wings. He went on to score but was promptly substituted at half time much to his dismay but also education. Nothing is more important than the principle. This one-track mind will make him a target for press ridicule, like Louis van Gaal knows so well now. It also will create collusion points for staff and boost his high-maintenance reputation. But it is this bloody-mindedness that Manchester City want to wed to their own ambitions.
Right now the English press already chomping at the bit, are racing to offer ways in which Guardiola will be challenged by what they perceive as a very tough league to win. But the cold facts are that five winners, Manchester United on 13 occasions, over the last 25 years does not make a good case for competitiveness.
So you do not need to invest in a top notch academy, hire the best football directors, and bring in the most sought-after manager, just so you can dominate Norwich-City, Stoke-City and Bournemouth. Manuel Pellegrini and Roberto Mancini before him, each with a winners’ medal, would have done just fine. Pep Guardiola and his head-strong beliefs has been brought in to conquer Europe.
