A new BBC documentary titled “Pep Guardiola: Chasing Perfection” delves deep into the thoughts of arguably the greatest and most influential football coach. The 53-year-old Guardiola achieved remarkable success at Barcelona, winning 14 trophies in four years. During his time at Manchester City, he secured five Premier League titles in six years and completed the rare Treble of Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League last season. The documentary, lasting an hour, explores Guardiola’s idealistic approach to football and features insights from players he coached, including Manuel Neuer, Robert Lewandowski, Rodri, and Kyle Walker. It also includes perspectives from journalists and key figures in his coaching team, like Manchester City’s director of football Txiki Begiristain and former assistant manager Domenec Torrent.
Barca gambled on Guardiola over Mourinho
It might be difficult to believe now, but when Barcelona appointed a relatively untested 37-year-old in 2008, it was seen as a significant risk. At that time, Pep Guardiola had only one year of managerial experience in Spain’s third division with Barcelona B.
Another contender for the position was Jose Mourinho, who had recently achieved success with two Premier League titles for Chelsea and a Champions League triumph with Porto in 2004.
According to Barcelona treasurer Xavier Sala-i-Martin, “Regrettably, Jose Mourinho doesn’t align with what we define as Barcelona DNA.”
Mourinho had a connection to Barcelona, serving as an assistant manager to Louis van Gaal and Sir Bobby Robson at the Nou Camp in the late 1990s. On the other hand, Guardiola, a La Masia Academy graduate, achieved success as a player by winning the 1992 European Cup with Johan Cruyff’s Dream Team.
Putting Messi in midfield changed history
Under Frank Rijkaard, Lionel Messi had experienced some success as a playmaking number 10 and on the right wing. However, it was Guardiola who arguably unleashed the potential of the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner when he made the decision to use him as a false nine in a match against Real Madrid in May 2009.
Sala-i-Martin reveals that Guardiola, while observing Real Madrid games, noticed that when the midfielders pressured the opposition’s midfielders, the defenders stayed back, creating a space of about 30 meters. This observation led Guardiola to the idea of playing Messi “not in the centre-forward role” but rather “in the midfield, with 30 meters to run.”
Former assistant coach Torrent recalls being puzzled about why his boss wanted to make significant changes in such a crucial game. However, Barcelona went on to achieve a historic 6-2 victory over their fiercest rivals on that day, with Messi scoring twice. That season, they accomplished an unprecedented triumph by winning La Liga, the Champions League, and the Copa del Rey.
“That day, I believe, altered the course of football history, the history of Barcelona, and the history of Messi,” Sala-i-Martin remarks.
Regretting asking players for advice at Bayern
In April 2014, after becoming the head coach of Bayern Munich, Guardiola confronted his former rivals Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final. The German champions, who had secured the trophy the previous year under Jupp Heynckes, faced expectations for Guardiola to achieve a similar feat.
Despite dominating possession in the first leg at the Bernabeu, Bayern ended up losing 1-0. Captain Neuer discloses that Guardiola, in an unusual move, experienced a moment of uncertainty and sought input from his players on how to approach the second leg.
The team expressed a desire to adopt an all-out attacking approach, and as a result, they suffered a 4-0 defeat at home.
“We deviated from the philosophy we had followed all year,” Neuer reflects. “But afterward, we understood it wasn’t the right decision. He didn’t stick to his own beliefs and relied too much on our input.”
Sala-i-Martin sees this incident as a pivotal moment when Guardiola resolved to trust in his own footballing ideas moving forward.
Rodri and the 2021 Champions League final
In 2021, Guardiola led Manchester City to their first-ever Champions League final. Despite not having won the trophy since his time with Barcelona in 2011, Guardiola surprised many by choosing not to include either of his exceptional holding midfielders, Rodri or Fernandinho.
Rodri discloses that the manager “didn’t provide an explanation” for his exclusion, mentioning that Guardiola had already made up his mind about the team “two or three days before the final.”
Following Chelsea’s victory with a goal from Kai Havertz, critics argued that Guardiola had overanalyzed the situation.
Former City defender Ilkay Gundogan comes to the defense of his ex-manager, stating, “He always approached things that way,” and adding, “I don’t believe it was something specific to the Champions League or big games.”
In 2023, City reached another Champions League final, with Rodri in the lineup this time. He scored the sole goal of the match.
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