What is eating Pep Guardiola right now? Maybe, just maybe, City of Manchester The manager feels that his era of dominance is facing a new threat that is largely of his own making.
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On one wing, he has Mikel Arteta and weapon try to take the crown of the City like Premier League champions — the two teams meet for the first time this season on Friday FA Cup fourth round draw (3 p.m. ET, live on ESPN+, US Only) at the Etihad — and closer to home, Guardiola could see Erik ten Hag breathe new life into it Manchester United so much so that the City’s neighbors can finally, after 10 years of doom, be ready to compete for the biggest titles once again.
Ten Training Hags Bayern MunichHe was the second team under Guardiola from 2013 to ’15, while Arteta was his assistant manager at City from 2016 to ’19. They are his protégés, currently leading the Premier League giants and both possess the same focus as Guardiola and the belief that they will soon rise to the top, with Pep merely the obstacle. get in their way.
Like Guardiola with things like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Joe Hart and Sergio Agüero, both coaches have shown a strong willingness to remove or transfer players who do not fit their requirements. Arteta broke up Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyangwhile Ten Hag quickly made it clear to cristiano ronaldo that it’s his way or the highway at United – all the way to Saudi Arabia before Real Madrid front.
Arteta and Ten Hag have witnessed Guardiola at close range, watched him coach and organize, hear him outline revolutionary tactical ideas, and perhaps most importantly, witness how he demanded and imposed full control over the players at his disposal.
Arteta has spent three years on the project to revive Arsenal and make them title challengers again. With the Gunners five points ahead of Man City at the top of the Premier League, the 40-year-old looks set to complete his plan at the Emirates.
Ten Hag, meanwhile, has only worked for six months at United, already proving his caliber by winning three Eredivisie titles with Ajax in the Netherlands. But despite his relatively brief stint at Old Trafford, Ten Hag has changed his mood and outlook and was able to end the club’s six-year title drought by winning the title. . Carabao Cup next month, defeated Forest of Nottingham 3-0 in the semi-final first leg on Wednesday (replay on ESPN+, US only).
So it’s clear that Guardiola now has two formidable opponents to contend with, and what is likely to make them more dangerous than his predecessors is the fact that both have learned from their own masters. He may have unwittingly prepared coaches to be more likely to snatch his crown.
Since starting to manage with Barcelona in 2008, Guardiola faced and overcame a number of formidable managerial rivals. From victory championship in his first season, turning down Sir Alex Ferguson’s chance to win consecutive European Cups (and a third as a coach) at United, Guardiola won every individual battle with rival coach.
He emerged from stiff competition with Jose Mourinho in Spain as the man with the most trophies at a time when Mourinho’s Barcelona and Real were arguably the two best teams in the world.
And with Bayern Munich and City, Guardiola was engaged in a decades-long duel with Jurgen Klopp, the first in Borussia Dortmund and then with Liverpool, and was forced to watch the German beat him to some of the biggest titles. But if you look at the two men’s trophy lists since their rivalry began in 2013, the scoreline in Guardiola’s favor is 16-7, so there’s only one winner in the match. that talent.
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Guardiola criticizes Man City players for lack of passion
Pep Guardiola vents his frustration after Manchester City’s upstream win over Tottenham in the Premier League.
However, the 52-year-old is showing signs that he is uneasy about new threats to his supremacy. In recent weeks, he has criticized his players – both individually and collectively – and even complained about his team’s supporters and the lack of atmosphere at the Etihad Stadium.
And just this week, Guardiola said that City have “no chance” of catching Arsenal in the title race if they continue to play as they have in recent weeks.
Perhaps manager’s mind games, but Guardiola has rarely strayed into that field in the past and in doing so now, he hints at being distracted and worried by the threat. from Arsenal and Arteta. With Ten Hag and United, the challenge is less immediate, but it’s there anyway.
During Guardiola’s time at City, since arriving in 2016, United have been nothing but a sporadic problem, winning a strange game against Man City and overspending to beat them in the Premier League. signing players like Alexis Sanchez, Harry Maguire and Fred. Guardiola never had to worry about United becoming rivals in terms of titles.
But as powerful, historic clubs like Arsenal and United build momentum, they are hard to stop.
Liverpool under Klopp is an example of that. Man City are at the top of the game against Liverpool, but dealing with two awakening giants, led by assertive, smart, forward-thinking managers, is a new problem for them. Guardiola and he were smart enough to know that it might be the hardest thing he’s ever faced. have faced since arriving at Etihad.
