"Man United, Pep Guardiola might make sense for both sides" - ESPNFC.com

[Green_Red]

Recent article published on espnfc.com weighing up Guardiola's options.

Guardiola is known to admire United, commenting after one visit to Old Trafford that he liked "this atmosphere" and that he "could see myself coaching here one day."

http://www.espnfc.com.au/blog/espn-...-best-for-pep-guardiola-to-answer-his-critics

Our best possible outcome is that Pep takes charge of United. Fingers crossed!

What do you think? What would Pep's best option be in the Premier League, leaving all bias aside?..

 

[Attila]

He's going to city

 

[Sarni]

Of course Pep would be perfect, he's exactly what we need right now but it's quite obvious already that he's going to City.

 

[Green_Red]

Did both of you misread the thread opener? Have you read the article?

 

[Judas]

Don't stop believing.........unless it's about Pep coming to us, just stop.

 

[stubie]

I'm bored now of all this

 

[JPRouve]

Until now Guardiola has only demonstrated that he was a great training ground coach, managing a club from top to bottom is a totally different job, so a priori City is the best destination.

 

[DWelbz19]

The article implicates he will have his own whole squad to morph here but I think he'd have just as much of a blank canvas at City. They could do with new fullbacks, at least two top class central midfielders, another CB and possibly another forward. Objectively speaking, I really don't see much more we could offer besides the glamour and history of the club than what City could. Or Chelsea and Arsenal for that matter. He'd earn a real fat paycheck at any of these clubs, with money to burn through.

 

[LazyRed-Ninja]

He's going to city

Not really sure about that. Their defense is depended on Kompany. Their midfield magic is declining and Aguero is a 3-4 match streak players these days. Sure they have a mammoth of resources, buf it that's the criteria he might as well pick United

 

[RoyoftheRavers]

What do you think? What would Pep's best option be in the Premier League, leaving all bias aside?..

His best option would, without doubt, be Man United, but not for the reasons set out in the link above.

 

[Attila]

Not really sure about that. Their defense is depended on Kompany. Their midfield magic is declining and Aguero is a 3-4 match streak players these days. Sure they have a mammoth of resources, buf it that's the criteria he might as well pick United

The guy on the Bayern board said he knows where Pep is going and it's obviously not us as we seem to be in talks with Mourinho. I think its clear that Pep to City has been a plan for a while now.

It will be interesting to see how he does because it's going to be a big change in comparison to his previous move from Barcelona to Bayern. As @DWelbz19 said he has half the team to sort out and I think it will be a lot harder to get them to play the way he wants them to compared to Bayern who are full of world class players in every position.

Could see it taking a year or two to sort out and if we bring in Mourinho right now I think he will have us in a strong position to compete against City and Pep next season.

 

[Theonas]

Until now Guardiola has only demonstrated that he was a great training ground coach, managing a club from top to bottom is a totally different job, so a priori City is the best destination.

This is actually a very good point that seems to always be lost among PL followers. It also applies to most non based British coaches where managing is simply not part of the job description. Pep, LvG, Ancelotti among many are and always have been head coaches with very little if any experience doing the job say Sir Alex used to do for us. The thing though is that most of them including Pep seem to look forward to taking on more responsibility and aspects of the club but whereas they can handle or not is a different matter.

 

[Tyrion]

What do you think? What would Pep's best option be in the Premier League, leaving all bias aside?..

Well of the 4 top clubs mentioned in the article:

Arsenal: Well set up for him but I can't see why he'd go here over the other 3. They have the least money, the 2nd/3rd best team, aren't the most famous and have never been European champions.
Chelsea could sack him within a season and the players aren't really reliable given their reputation for underperforming for certain managers.
City and United on the other hand. City have money but United have it too. United have had one of the best youth systems in the country for a few years but City have improved massively in this area. City have the better team right now but a lot of them need replacing so they're not the European juggernaut in waiting they've been made out to be for years now. United are one of the biggest clubs in the world while City are relative unknowns but that could be appealing to Guardiola. I think City have the edge as they're clearly desperate to get him. They've been after him for years and have recruited old colleagues. Short of importing Catalans to colonise Manchester, there's not much more they can do.

Tl;dr:

Finances:
City = 10/10
United = 9/10

Organisation (includes whether or not he'd be given time):
City = 9/10
United = 7/10

History:
City = 5/10
United = 9/10

Current team:
City = 8/10
United = 7/10

Efforts made to get him:
City = 9/10
United = 5/10

Overall:
City = 41/50
United = 37/50

I think he'd be better off at United though as he'd be given plenty of time and resources and the team needs plenty of work like City. But the club is much bigger and I still remember him referring to us as "Manchester" as if City didn't exist at the time.

 

[LazyRed-Ninja]

The guy on the Bayern board said he knows where Pep is going and it's obviously not us as we seem to be in talks with Mourinho. I think its clear that Pep to City has been a plan for a while now.

It will be interesting to see how he does because it's going to be a big change in comparison to his previous move from Barcelona to Bayern. As @DWelbz19 said he has half the team to sort out and I think it will be a lot harder to get them to play the way he wants them to compared to Bayern who are full of world class players in every position.

Could see it taking a year or two to sort out and if we bring in Mourinho right now I think he will have us in a strong position to compete against City and Pep next season.

I think he will be in for a massive eye opener. The little teams in the PL are hard to beat these days and he does not have Xavi, Messi, Muller or Robben at his disposal. Sure he has the credentials to continue his magic touch, but i for once will not be surprised if things dont go as planned.

 

[sammsky1]

I have this funny feeling pep will end up with the chavs

 

[Tyrion]

I think he will be in for a massive eye opener. The little teams in the PL are hard to beat these days and he does not have Xavi, Messi, Muller or Robben at his disposal. Sure he has the credentials to continue his magic touch, but i for once will not be surprised if things dont go as planned.

It's almost certainly my bias starting to kick in as City seem to be favourites to get him but when I think about it, he's only managed at two clubs and for 6 and a half seasons while having the best players in the world. As you said, he won't have that when he comes to the PL so there's still big question marks as to how things will go.

I reserve the right to change my opinion overnight if he comes here.

 

[LeChuck]

Can't wait for the PL to break Pep.

 

[Question234]

since when did city have more money to spend then us, I've never understood that.

 

[Escobar]

People might realize at one point that it does not matter what someone said years ago

 

[Giggsy PO]

This is actually a very good point that seems to always be lost among PL followers. It also applies to most non based British coaches where managing is simply not part of the job description. Pep, LvG, Ancelotti among many are and always have been head coaches with very little if any experience doing the job say Sir Alex used to do for us. The thing though is that most of them including Pep seem to look forward to taking on more responsibility and aspects of the club but whereas they can handle or not is a different matter.

I am not sure about Ancelotti. But if I remember correctly from Zlatan's autobiography LVG was a sporting director at Ajax. So he actually has a lot of experience outside "ground coaching".

But it is totally irrelevant in our situation.

 

[jem]

I have this funny feeling pep will end up with the chavs

I'm actually surprised more hasn't been made of that possibility. Unlike City, they don't have a manager on a contract (Hiddink is interim, no?), they are in London, they have an owner who has been desperate for the kind of football Guardiola teams play, and they would provide a chance for Pep to stick it to Mourinho by following him and succeeding.

 

[Member 5225]

Still don't understand the massive obsession with him.

Walked into ready made teams of two giants and a fairly uncompetitive league.

Will watch his PL adventure with interest.

I reckon he'll find it harder than most (incl him) think.

 

[devilish]

Still don't understand the massive obsession with him.

Walked into ready made teams of two giants and a fairly uncompetitive league.

Will watch his PL adventure with interest.

I reckon he'll find it harder than most (incl him) think.

Do you prefer Giggs to him?

 

[Member 5225]

Do you prefer Giggs to him?

Holy crap no!

 

[Porco Rosso]

Well of the 4 top clubs mentioned in the article:

I think he'd be better off at United though as he'd be given plenty of time and resources and the team needs plenty of work like City. But the club is much bigger and I still remember him referring to us as "Manchester" as if City didn't exist at the time.

Not sure about the idea that he'd get more time - Moyes thought he had 6 years only then to be shown the door practically before he's taken his coat off, and we're now wanting rid of Val Gaal in pretty short order. I don't think anyone coming here now would have confidence about embarking on a long term plan! Even you appear to concede that City is his best bet for longevity.

Anyway, isn't Pep just Van Gaal with better players?

 

[Ish]

Still don't understand the massive obsession with him.

Walked into ready made teams of two giants and a fairly uncompetitive league.

Will watch his PL adventure with interest.

I reckon he'll find it harder than most (incl him) think.

This is exactly why I'd love it if he "picked" us (assuming he has the choice ). Walking into city, winning the league with them a couple of times over say 2-3 seasons will again, IMO, not add to his "credibility" in the eyes of some. Unless of course he can go on and win big ears with city as well.

Getting us back to the top would actually "prove" to a lot of doubters that he's able to do that little extra. FWIW, I actually think that the changes he made and implemented at Barca, should give him a little more credit than "walking into a ready made team", but yeah, anyone coaching Xavi, Iniesta & Messi etc does have 90% of the ingredients.

Look at Enrique, as the story goes, after their defeat to Moyes' Sociedad, there were whispers of him being on the brink of the sack....Xavi has an emergency team meeting, tells Messi "does he want Ronaldo to win another Balon d'Or "'... Messi picks up his form in January....they destroy everyone in front of them

 

[sunama]

I reckon he'll find it harder than most (incl him) think.

Indeed.
Klopp is finding things tough right now (though its early days).
LVG who has managed in some big leagues, has also stated that EPL is more competitive than any other league.

 

[RedSky]

I've said this for a while. Some of our fans are living in the past if they think we have a divine right to turn up and win a game. The PL has changed in recent years, every fixture be it home or away is a real fight. Their are no 3 point bankers anymore. The influx of TV money has narrowed the gap and clubs that do get promoted are fearless and just go for it.

Pep will no doubt be good at City, they probably have the best attacking talent in the league. But he's still going to struggle IMO. I think if he came to us he'd be a flop and the fans will go at him in no time. He's got no experience of managing a club in our situation.

 

[Tyrion]

Not sure about the idea that he'd get more time - Moyes thought he had 6 years only then to be shown the door practically before he's taken his coat off, and we're now wanting rid of Val Gaal in pretty short order. I don't think anyone coming here now would have confidence about embarking on a long term plan! Even you appear to concede that City is his best bet for longevity.

Anyway, isn't Pep just Van Gaal with better players?

Maybe. I do think that if you play decent football and have top 4 secured, you'll meet the expectations of the board which isn't too hard.

Pep is much better. They both play possession football but Peps teams pass forward occasionally.

 

[RedSky]

Maybe. I do think that if you play decent football and have top 4 secured, you'll meet the expectations of the board which isn't too hard.

Pep is much better. They both play possession football but Peps teams pass forward occasionally.

He's worse than LVG in some ways. Some of his player selections for Bayern in the Bundesliga have been very odd. Hard to judge Peps time in the Bundesliga given the gulf in class between them and the rest. He's not made them weaker but winning the title isn't a huge achievement, it'd be a huge shock if they didn't.

 

[Norris]

If United's team were in better shape, he might have come here. I think Pep prefers the easy way out. He chooses the strongest team in the league and tries to dominate with them. If he does indeed come to United, I will have immense respect for him, else you know that his only aim is to win the title with the best team and to build a legacy for himself. It's a very unsavoury way of becoming a legend in my eyes.

 

[Tyrion]

He's worse than LVG in some ways. Some of his player selections for Bayern in the Bundesliga have been very odd. Hard to judge Peps time in the Bundesliga given the gulf in class between them and the rest. He's not made them weaker but winning the title isn't a huge achievement, it'd be a huge shock if they didn't.

We can only judge him in the CL really. He got hammered in his first season by Real Madrid 5-0 on aggregate and lost 5-3 to Barcelona last year so this year will be interesting.

 

[Stobzilla]

If United's team were in better shape, he might have come here. I think Pep prefers the easy way out. He chooses the strongest team in the league and tries to dominate with them. If he does indeed come to United, I will have immense respect for him, else you know that his only aim is to win the title with the best team and to build a legacy for himself. It's a very unsavoury way of becoming a legend in my eyes.

I think we are in better shape long term than City, their squad is on the turn, they need to completely remodel their defence and midfield.

 

[Silverman]

since when did city have more money to spend then us, I've never understood that.

I get where your coming from. I think City may have more money but both United and them have so much that it won't mean one could outbid the other unless they are throwing 100's of millions at a players transfer. City may have more room to take a risk with the extra financial power. City's money is coming from a sugar daddy that just pumps money in. Ours is far more respectable, through revenue, sponsorship deals etc.

 

[Silverman]

I think we are in better shape long term than City, their squad is on the turn, they need to completely remodel their defence and midfield.

Good shout. We have De Gea, Smalling, Shaw, Schneiderlin, Herrera, Pereira, Memphis (I really hope he improves) Martial. All top players atm and all relatively young.

 

[Norris]

I think we are in better shape long term than City, their squad is on the turn, they need to completely remodel their defence and midfield.

I get that their team is on the older side, but our squad is really thin and heavily unbalanced. I agree we have some gems in our squad like DDG, Shaw, Smalling, Herrera and Martial that can shape the future of our squad for the next 5-7 years easily, but Pep isn't interested in long term. He's going to stay there for 3 years before moving onto another league (Or he may even go onto coach a national team). And if he does go there, you know he will invest only in ready made quality players (I have a feeling he will bring Thiago with him). I really want him to join us for sure, but I feel the board is not being decisive enough (I obviously have no proof for this, just a suspicion) and have not put out enough feelers to entice him either. On the other hand, Man City have been preparing for this for more than 2-3 years. I even read some article today which said that he will be the highest paid manager in footballing history once he joins City (he will apparently earn more than Aguero too).

 

[Stobzilla]

I get that their team is on the older side, but our squad is really thin and heavily unbalanced. I agree we have some gems in our squad like DDG, Shaw, Smalling, Herrera and Martial that can shape the future of our squad for the next 5-7 years easily, but Pep isn't interested in long term. He's going to stay there for 3 years before moving onto another league (Or he may even go onto coach a national team). And if he does go there, you know he will invest only in ready made quality players (I have a feeling he will bring Thiago with him). I really want him to join us for sure, but I feel the board is not being decisive enough (I obviously have no proof for this, just a suspicion) and have not put out enough feelers to entice him either. On the other hand, Man City have been preparing for this for more than 2-3 years. I even read some article today which said that he will be the highest paid manager in footballing history once he joins City (he will apparently earn more than Aguero too).

We lack a few attacking options but I wouldn't consider our squad "thin". again, long term we are going to have more and more of our own players looking to make a step-up, Januzaj and Wilson coming back into the fold from next year. We are in the midst of a stupidly large number of injuries in one area of the field I think skews perceptions on the make up of our squad. We are only a couple (as in 2) attacking options and possibly a centre back away. City are going to need more and will need to pay through the nose to get those "proven" players that they will need to fit his time frame because there aren't a lot of them around available at any sort of reasonable price at the minute.

 

[Norris]

We lack a few attacking options but I wouldn't consider our squad "thin". again, long term we are going to have more and more of our own players looking to make a step-up, Januzaj and Wilson coming back into the fold from next year. We are in the midst of a stupidly large number of injuries in one area of the field I think skews perceptions on the make up of our squad. We are only a couple (as in 2) attacking options and possibly a centre back away. City are going to need more and will need to pay through the nose to get those "proven" players that they will need to fit his time frame because there aren't a lot of them around available at any sort of reasonable price at the minute.

I think we are more than just 2-3 signings away from being a great squad. We don't have proper cover for RB, LB (I see Blind as more of a CM and Rojo as a CB), one CB short, one genuine worldclass winger on the right (hoping Memphis finally develops on the left), a CM (Carrick and BFS have not got long left imo), and obviously our forward line. City aren't in great shape either, but the squad they have will probably last through Pep's tenure (I think they probably just need better FBs and maybe a winger). And City were always willing to throw stupid money at players. They have also started turning over profits for the first time since the Sheik's reign, so FFP won't be a problem either.