With the FIFA World Cup in Qatar approaching its conclusion, many players have put in performances that either support or contradict their opinions of the said players. For example, whether Argentina win it or not, Messi has shown once again that he’s the GOAT, putting an end to whatever debate there was before. The tournament has also proved why Pep Guardiola is the best manager in world football, and here’s why:
His system. Guardiola’s system at Man City is arguably the strongest across Europe and could easily be classified as one of the best tactical setups in football history.
Pep has dominated football since his first managerial job in charge of FC Barcelona in the 2000s. He put together what many consider the greatest club side of all time: the Barça team of 2008-2011.
Contrary to what many believe, Pep didn’t just inherit a squad that was capable of achieving the success it did. Of course, he was given a very talented squad, to say the least, but he also had to make some tough calls and tactical decisions that ultimately catered for the domination his side had over Europe during that period.
The former Bayern boss promoted Sergio Busquets from the Barcelona B side, with the player going on to become one of, if not the greatest holding midfielder of all-time.
Furthermore, Pep made the decision to swap Samuel Eto’o for Swedish legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic in what was a major deal in 2009. However, following what Pep deemed a disappointing spell in Spain, Zlatan was then sold to Milan soon after as Pep made way for the signing of David Villa, who was crucial in winning the Champions League in 2011, the second time in three years.
Fast forward more than a decade and the World Cup has proved that the City boss is still undisputedly the best manager in world football.
With the exception of his centre-backs, all of Pep’s players didn’t impress during the month in Qatar, with none of his attackers having a significant impact on their national teams.
Argentina striker Julian Alvarez is the exception to this. However, the 22-year-old has seen very limited minutes for Man City this campaign and is yet to be fully integrated into Pep’s side and system.
The rest of Pep’s squad failed to deliver the quality we’re so used to seeing on the international stage, with players such as Kevin De Bruyne, Joao Cancelo and Bernardo Silva all having tournaments to forget.
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Furthermore, stars such as Jack Grealish didn’t get much game-time, whereas Phil Foden wasn’t anywhere near his dazzling best, apart from the victory against Wales.
The lack of efficiency and effectiveness of the Man City players on the global stage is worrying, but also serves to highlight how great of a coach Pep is for deploying a system that gets the best out of his players on a weekly basis.
Man City currently sit 5 points behind league-leaders Arsenal, but Pep will be confident in bridging that gap given his pedigree in high pressure situations and close title races.