Next United Manager: Pep Guardiola?

[Member 5225]

Pep Guardiola: I could see myself managing Manchester United one day

The Bayern Munich boss has admitted he see himself at Old Trafford

IAN HERBERT

Wednesday 15 October 2014

Pep Guardiola, the Bayern Munich manager, has revealed his desire to take over at Manchester United.

Guardiola was mooted to be Sir Alex Ferguson’s first choice to take over and even met the former Old Trafford manager in 2012 for dinner “in a super restaurant” when the Spaniard was on a year-long sabbatical from football.

And in the book Pep Confidential, which details his first season in charge of Bayern Munich, he said of United: “I like this atmosphere. I could see myself coaching here one day.”

He opted to stay at Bayern Munich, paving the way for David Moyes to take over at Old Trafford, who in turn was shown the door in favour of Louis van Gaal.

It wasn’t clear whether Guardiola was offered the United job when he met Ferguson and in March this year, soon after winning the Bundesliga title with Bayern, he joked that he could not understand the Scot’s accent.

Guardiola at Old Trafford last season

“Sir Alex spoke quickly, so sometimes I have a problem understanding him,” he joked. “That’s why maybe I didn’t understand if I received an offer or not!”

The book is a fly-on-the-wall account of Guardiola’s methods as a manager and offers insight into the man and his tactics.

He reveals that he detests the “tiki taka” style made famous when he was at Barcelona, claiming it “has no purpose”, along with what he calls his “monumental feck up” in last season’s Champions League when Bayern lost 5-0 on aggregate to Real Madrid in the semi-final.

On the game he said: “I got it wrong man. I got it totally wrong. It’s a monumental feck up. A total mess. The biggest feck up of my life as a coach.”

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/...naging-manchester-united-one-day-9797074.html

 

[freshibal]

So it begins....

 

[Saxo]

Can't put my finger on it, but something makes me not want him at United.

However, that article isn't even worth clicking on, needless to say.

 

[Invictus]

Makes a lot of sense. One of Guardiola or De Boer would be ideal to take over from Van Gaal when he retires. They share a similar kind of football philosophy and in Pep's case he would be the perfect candidate in terms of stature and the ability to build upon Louis' team (if he intends on retiring) and lead us to a higher level of success. That said he would only be a medium term appointment at best, maybe that'll factor into our plans in the future.

 

[DWelbz19]

Yes, not yet though.

 

[bosnian_red]

Can see it happening once Van Gaal retires, Guardiola's style definitely tends to build on Van Gaal's (albeit a lot more possession based). Weird that it says he hates "tiki taka" when he pretty much started that.

 

[SalfordRed1960]

It looks like LVG is grooming Giggs for the role, so I doubt Pep would be offered it. My preference would be for LVG to continue if he becomes as successful as I expect.

If he is unsuccessful, and by that I mean United win sod all in his time, and United decide to try a different approach then I would prefer Klopp or Simeone.

 

[Glanville95]

Well van Gaal left the foundations and blueprint for Pep's hugely successful Barcelona side, so perhaps we could see something similar at United with Pep succeeding van Gaal once his contract is up.

United would seem the next logical step for Pep, as he seemingly values the traditions and ethos of a club and we should have the correct infrastructure in place for him to implement his philosophy quickly and promote promising youth players. More so than any other side in the Premier League you would think anyway and you would have to imagine we will be in a far better place three years from now too.

 

[Sir A1ex]

How can he claim to hate Tiki Taka?

 

[predator]

Tbh I don't rate him that much but I'd love to see him manage United one day. I just think his style is hard to implement on a team that isn't used to it. Also I am sceptical of his plan B's. He knows so much about Tiki taka and 'total football' but I'm unsure how well he could adopt a different approach when needs be. He was so suited to Barca, they were a match made in heaven, he should have stayed there for as long as possible.

 

[iBoss]

Can't put my finger on it, but something makes me not want him at United.

However, that article isn't even worth clicking on, needless to say.

His side getting demolished by a counter attacking team? That counter attacking team is more our style I guess.

 

[RedDevilCanuck]

Seems pretty arrogant. He worked wonders with one of the greatest midfields of all time and Messi. I don't think he's that special.

 

[Invictus]

Possession football and Guardiola are being written off in a hurry IMO. The game goes in cycles. One could argue his Barcelona demolished two of the best counter-attacking teams in modern football - United in Rome and to a lesser extent at Wembley and Madrid on a consistent basis. Right now coaches have devised strategies to exploit the possession style wherein the concede possession deliberately. By soon enough disciples of the possession style will prepare measures to counter that and be more incisive. What goes around comes around. One would think someone as immersed in classical tactics as Pep would be at the forefront of total football's future and bring rebooted/ fresher ideas to the system.

 

[Bob Loblaw]

How can he claim to hate Tiki Taka?

He doesn't like the phrase, and how his football is labelled. It's not that he hates the style of football you associate with 'tiki taka'.

Seems pretty arrogant. He worked wonders with one of the greatest midfields of all time and Messi. I don't think he's that special.

He's too modest if anything. He's a perfectionist but is willing to admit when he makes mistakes and always gives the credit to his players rather than himself.

 

[Kazi]

I'm all for it, one day. He's a class guy and a great manager.

 

[Manucho the boss]

Would love to see him come here and eye gouge Mourinho out of his position at the top.

 

[Dumbat12]

He is the best/second best manager in the world right now so I'm all for it. Just not Giggs, for the love of god.

 

[DWelbz19]

He doesn't like the phrase, and how his football is labelled. It's not that he hates the style of football you associate with 'tiki taka'.

I imagine he's also frustrated with how disillusioned people have come with the concept. It's not simply possessive, metronomic play. It features heavily on winning the ball back as quickly as possible, constant and agressive pressing, a very high defensive line and overwhelming the opposition in tight positions.
-
He is the best manager in the world, so I am 100% for it.

 

[Bob Loblaw]

I imagine he's also frustrated with how disillusioned people have come with the concept. It's not simply possessive, metronomic play. It features heavily on winning the ball back as quickly as possible, constant and agressive pressing, a very high defensive line and overwhelming the opposition in tight positions.
-
He is the best manager in the world, so I am 100% for it.

Yep, spot on. The Independent have butchered his tiki taka quotes there, he was talking about how people think it's just possession for the sake of possession and how that's not what he wants.

 

[World Game]

If you haven't realized, he bandwagons on teams previously managed by LVG. (barca, bayern, us next?). LVG's philosophy is certainly a stepping stone into allowing Pep to successfully implement his own.

 

[Redo91]

I would be delighted to see him take over from LVG. It would be ideal to have him take the reigns for a few years with Giggs eventually getting the job. I'd be sceptical about giving Giggs the job straight after LVG but if he was to spend another few years working with Guardiola I wouldn't be too worried about him taking over. Playing under SAF and working alongside LVG and Guardiola would be a decent apprenticeship to be fair!

 

[Bob Loblaw]

If you haven't realized, he bandwagons on teams previously managed by LVG. (barca, bayern, us next?). LVG's philosophy is certainly a stepping stone into allowing Pep to successfully implement his own.

This nonsense again?

 

[Skills]

Think he'll end up managing City next personally. Klopp to Arsenal and we'll probably hire Giggs the same summer.

 

[Moriarty]

Possession football and Guardiola are being written off in a hurry IMO. The game goes in cycles. One could argue his Barcelona demolished two of the best counter-attacking teams in modern football - United in Rome and to a lesser extent at Wembley and Madrid on a consistent basis. Right now coaches have devised strategies to exploit the possession style wherein the concede possession deliberately. By soon enough disciples of the possession style will prepare measures to counter that and be more incisive. What goes around comes around. One would think someone as immersed in classical tactics as Pep would be at the forefront of total football's future and bring rebooted/ fresher ideas to the system.

Very good post. Especially agree about the cyclical nature of the game. There really is nothing new under the Sun; just variations, at least as far as football is concerned. As for your ultimate sentence, I wonder how much autonomy he actually has at Bayern to introduce fresh tactics and/or experiment? I've always though that they were a very innovative and forward-thinking club but a friend of mine, who's a life-long fan, tells me that there is an element there that can be a bit sniffy about things like that, especially if they believe that Bayern's "traditions" (whatever they may be) are being compromised. We had a taste of that last season (and mutterings about it under Van Gaal) so who knows.

 

[Red Shorts]

How can people honestly say they wouldn't want him here in the future? He's 43 years old and has won more at this stage than all, bar a few, of the current top managers in the world have won in their lifetime of managing, creating arguably the best ever club side when he was at Barca. Moyes showed us perfectly that having great players at your disposal doesn't suddenly make it a great team, after we saw our own team drop over 20 points in the space of a year. Pep will be a success when he leaves Bayern, and he will be a success at his next club; he is just that good.

 

[World Game]

This nonsense again?

The only nonsense is the football played by your team.

 

[2 man midfield]

Think he'll end up managing City next personally. Klopp to Arsenal and we'll probably hire Giggs the same summer.

 

[Invictus]

Very good post. Especially agree about the cyclical nature of the game. There really is nothing new under the Sun; just variations, at least as far as football is concerned. As for your ultimate sentence, I wonder how much autonomy he actually has at Bayern to introduce fresh tactics and/or experiment? I've always though that they were a very innovative and forward-thinking club but a friend of mine, who's a life-long fan, tells me that there is an element there that can be a bit sniffy about things like that, especially if they believe that Bayern's "traditions" (whatever they may be) are being compromised. We had a taste of that last season (and mutterings about it under Van Gaal) so who knows.

Yup. One does get the impression of Pep going against the gradient at Bayern a bit. IIRC his philosophy came under some criticism last season from within the Bayern organisation, their directors and ex-players have historically been quite outspoken. Perhaps the departure of Hoeness factors into it too, in terms of enabling the others to preserve their traditions in his stead and resist from ceding autonomy to Guardiola like United as an example would. Of course, this is only a casual outsider's view, could be totally off the mark.

@Balu or @Blackwidow are better placed to provide a more detailed insight into this particular subject.

 

[JP77]

He is the best/second best manager in the world right now so I'm all for it. Just not Giggs, for the love of god.

Certainly not better than Mourinho and I think there's another two or three that you could argue being just as good too.

 

[Joga Bonito]

An article with better context on Pep Guardiola's comments and not like the click-baiting one by Herbert.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...aka-its-rubbish-and-completely-pointless.html

Spoiler

In a new book profiling the work of Pep Guardiola, journalist Marti Perarnau reveals the Spaniard's true feelings about the 'tiki-taka' term associated with the football played by his brilliant Barcelona team.

Pep Guardiola tucks into a starter of pureed potatoes, with obvious pleasure. He looks like he hasn't eaten anything since last night and, when I ask, he nods. He can't eat a thing on matchdays.

We are having dinner after Bayern Munich have beaten Nürnberg in a bad-tempered Munich derby.

Bayern were dreadful in the first half. It's as if the players want to please Pep by making sure they pass the ball, one of the group remarks, which immediately sets the coach off.

"I loathe all that passing for the sake of it, all that tiki-taka. It's so much rubbish and has no purpose. You have to pass the ball with a clear intention, with the aim of making it into the opposition's goal. It's not about passing for the sake of it.

The following day, he expands on this message in a meeting with his players.

"Be yourselves. You need to dig into your own DNA. I hate tiki-taka. Tiki-taka means passing the ball for the sake of it, with no clear intention. And it's pointless.

"Don't believe what people say. Barça didn't do tiki-taka! It's completely made up! Don't believe a word of it! In all team sports, the secret is to overload one side of the pitch so that the opponent must tilt its own defence to cope. You overload on one side and draw them in so that they leave the other side weak.

"And when we've done all that, we attack and score from the other side. That's why you have to pass the ball, but only if you're doing it with a clear intention. It's only to overload the opponent, to draw them in and then to hit them with the sucker punch. That's what our game needs to be. Nothing to do with tiki-taka."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...-manager-and-emulating-Sir-Alex-Ferguson.html

Perarnau goes on to claim in his book that Bayern fended off heavyweight rivals to secure Guardiola as coach following his exit from Barcelona.

"During his sabbatical year in New York, the job offers poured in," Perarnau wrote. "His ex-colleague, Txiki Begiristain, the director of football at Manchester City, was very insistent. "He also met up in Paris with Roman Abramovich, who was prepared to do anything to lure Pep to Chelsea.

 

[Suedesi]

Think he'll end up managing City next personally. Klopp to Arsenal and we'll probably hire Giggs the same summer.

That would be awful

 

[Cheesy]

Seems pretty arrogant. He worked wonders with one of the greatest midfields of all time and Messi. I don't think he's that special.

How's he arrogant? It's not as if he's come out and demanded we set aside the job for him in the future - he's said he likes the atmosphere and that he could perhaps see himself here. If he'd only ever managed Blackburn and Bolton then I'd see where you're coming from, but he's been at other top level clubs. Considering that, it's hardly unrealistic to see him possibly coming here, especially when we appointed David fecking Moyes.

Not to mention that while he inherited some top class players, it was under Guardiola that most of them played their very best football and truly shone. He got the team playing a system which had them as the best side in the world, and which led to them dominating most games. He did a superb job there.

If you haven't realized, he bandwagons on teams previously managed by LVG. (barca, bayern, us next?). LVG's philosophy is certainly a stepping stone into allowing Pep to successfully implement his own.

Perhaps true with Bayern to an extent, but LVG's 2nd spell at Barca was absolutely terrible. LVG's philosophy didn't really have anything to do with Guardiola's success there, I don't think.

 

[Cheesy]

That would be awful

"Hey honey, you know that Porsche and that Ferrari I was talking about getting you and you've wanted for years? Well, guess what? The neighbours bought them! Here's a bicycle that's been chopped in half. Happy birthday!"

All we'd need to compound that would be Fergie coming out of retirement and taking the Chelsea job.

 

[Tarrou]

I was actually saying to my German friend yesterday that I could see Pep taking over at United in a few years.

He's a brilliant manager and I think he'll get better. He's made a few mistakes but he's an intelligent guy so he'll learn from them.

It's a bit like the Mourinho thing, a few people dislike the idea of him taking the United job on the basis of his style of play, but he'd pretty much guarantee success on the field. And given the cluster feck we've seen from United since Fergie stepped down, I would jump at the chance of Pep taking the job if he wanted it. Maybe he could lure Messi over for a few years too

 

[Cheesy]

I was actually saying to my German friend yesterday that I could see Pep taking over at United in a few years.

He's a brilliant manager and I think he'll get better. He's made a few mistakes but he's an intelligent guy so he'll learn from them.

It's a bit like the Mourinho thing, a few people dislike the idea of him taking the United job on the basis of his style of play, but he'd pretty much guarantee success on the field. And given the cluster feck we've seen from United since Fergie stepped down, I would jump at the chance of Pep taking the job if he wanted it. Maybe he could lure Messi over for a few years too

Just imagine it. Years of speculation over Ronaldo, but then we get something even better.

Will never happen, but it's a nice thought nevertheless.

 

[bosnian_red]

Seems pretty arrogant. He worked wonders with one of the greatest midfields of all time and Messi. I don't think he's that special.

Don't see how what he said is arrogant but I'd rather have an arrogant/cocky/confident manager then one like Moyes.

 

[Xaviesta]

Can see it happening once Van Gaal retires, Guardiola's style definitely tends to build on Van Gaal's (albeit a lot more possession based). Weird that it says he hates "tiki taka" when he pretty much started that.

He doesn't like the term tiki taka, and I don't either, even though when tiki taka is played well it's the football I like most. To me, it just sounds like a flippant way of describing a style of football.

 

[Bob Loblaw]

Perhaps true with Bayern to an extent, but LVG's 2nd spell at Barca was absolutely terrible. LVG's philosophy didn't really have anything to do with Guardiola's success there, I don't think.

Indeed. World Game thinks Barcelona are based on van Gaal's philosophy (especially La Masia), but it's Cruyff that they follow, or at least did until Rosell took over. If you want to call Pep a disciple of anyone it should be him, or Bielsa.

 

[Xaviesta]

That would be awful

Frank De Boer?

 

[Ish]

Yes, please. Him or Klopp