Manchester City manager could have won even more if he had incorporated a greater range of personalities in his teamsOne of the many tragedies of humanity is that the things we like in others – and in ourselves – are strongly related to the things we don’t like. So when we praise Pep Guardiola’s vision, precision and idealism, responsible for some of the most beautiful football ever seen, we must also evaluate his zealotry, obsession and narcissism, responsible for some of the most avoidable failures ever seen. Or, put another way, he probably is bald, definitely isn’t a fraud and absolutely that jardigan is a hate crime. Related: ‘The Romário-fication of Raheem’: how Manchester City transformed Sterling Related: Manchester City...
When Pep Guardiola or Darth Vader’s awesome destructive creations go wrong it tends to be for the same reasonsThere are many issues with Return of the Jedi, not the least significant of which is the fact that it ends in essentially the same way that A New Hope did. Perhaps there are technical differences between the deficiencies that render the Death Star vulnerable in the two films, but fundamentally, it can be taken out by Rebel fighters landing a single accurate shot. As the X-wings were to Darth Vader, so Teemu Pukki, Todd Cantwell, Raúl Jiménez and Adama Traoré are to Pep Guardiola. For both Darth and Pep, when it goes wrong, it tends to be for the same reasons.This...
Sheffield United’s innovative tactics are derived from the influence of Pep Guardiola and changes in the lawsLast Saturday, Rochdale scored a brilliant goal against Southend, working the ball from front to back in 16 rapid passes. As is the way of things these days, clips circulating on social media have not merely celebrated the artistry and the technical mastery of the goal, the courage to attempt it, but have rapidly followed football’s equivalent of Godwin’s Law and degenerated into deeply tedious rows about Pep Guardiola.To parse these as briefly as possible: somebody invents an army of neanderthal straw men and tweets something like: “Who says Guardiola isn’t having an influence on English football?” To which the correct answer, you would...
Emphatic win against Watford showcased Pep Guardiola’s men at their well-grooved best, full of invention and good habitsWelcome to the new order. Domestic games: played 51, won 43. Domestic trophies: three out of three. Five goal hauls: eleven. Defeats since Christmas: one.Scan the history books, fan back to the big city clubs of Victorian times, linger on the red-shirted eras of the last 50 years. English domestic football has never seen anything quite like this single-season hit from Manchester City. It turns out we really do all live in a sky blue world now. Continue reading...
The feeling persists that the club, as opposed to the fans, regard extra amounts of domestic silverware as merely ornamentalJust over three years ago, Leicester City were visitors at the Etihad when the worst-kept secret in European football was confirmed – Pep Guardiola had agreed to take over as Manchester City manager and would replace Manuel Pellegrini in the summer. By way of celebration City managed to get themselves trounced by a side on their way to winning the league. Any hopes Pellegrini and his players had of adding another title to the ones City won in 2012 and 2014 were ended by the Foxes’ rampant away form, just as Tottenham’s had been a few weeks earlier.Leicester were frequently unstoppable...