Pep's spending is insane (£941m and counting at City)

[Harry190]

I think his work at Barca is underrated. He shipped out a lot of stars and promoted youth. His squad was class but he played a big part in developing them to another level. But yeah, he hasn't been the underdog and quit Barca when Real pipped them to the league.

I like him, but he has nothing to show that's on the level of Ferguson when he took over, Mourinho with Porto or even Zidane's three successive CL.

 

[Gehrman]

I like him, but he has nothing to show that's on the level of Ferguson when he took over, Mourinho with Porto or even Zidane's three successive CL.

I'd say his time with Barca and Zidane 3 CL's were about equal. Zidane had a squad full of world class players and Ronaldo.

 

[Harry190]

I'd say his time with Barca and Zidane 3 CL's were about equal. Zidane had a squad full of world class players and Ronaldo.

He didn't sign a single noteworthy player during his time. Not a single one. He took over a team in turmoil during the Benitez era. He won it, not twice in a row, which was already unprecedented, but three times with the same squad and youth players who are mostly slightly above average. People forget what Guardiola inherited. Messi is the game changer. Etoo and al were top notch. He spent a lot of money on players that didn't really work out either. He fell out of favour with Guardiola and Ibrahimovic. Zidane, regardless of what you think of his current managerial abilities, was a miracle worker.

 

[United58]

It took us 6 seasons since sir alex retired to go and buy a proper CB and RB where as Pep got that wish in one go. Give absolute backing to managers, most will be successful.

To be fair, we've bought player after player, they've just been useless - Bailly and Darmian for the positions mentioned, for example. Ferguson left us light in midfield and we invested heavily in Schweinsteiger, Fellaini, Schneiderlin, Matic, Herrera and Pogba - only the last 2 have been any good (and Matic for the first month).

 

[Gehrman]

He didn't sign a single noteworthy player during his time. Not a single one. He took over a team in turmoil during the Benitez era. He won it, not twice in a row, which was already unprecedented, but three times with the same squad and youth players who are mostly slightly above average. People forget what Guardiola inherited. Messi is the game changer. Etoo and al were top notch. He spent a lot of money on players that didn't really work out either. He fell out of favour with Guardiola and Ibrahimovic. Zidane, regardless of what you think of his current managerial abilities, was a miracle worker.

Zidane's squad was insanely good. Benitez was never a right fit for them. I'm not downplaying Zidane's achievement. It's one of the best ever, but so is Guardiola's with Barca. Yeah Guardiola had Messi and Zidane had Ronaldo. Zidane didn't have to buy players, because Madrid had spent big before the transfer market exploded.

 

[Gehrman]

To be fair, we've bought player after player, they've just been useless - Bailly and Darmian for the positions mentioned, for example. Ferguson left us light in midfield and we invested heavily in Schweinsteiger, Fellaini, Schneiderlin, Matic, Herrera and Pogba - only the last 2 have been any good (and Matic for the first month).

It's depressing we've barely had one succesfull transfer post Fergie. Blind worked alright for his price. Pogba maybe not lived up to his world record fee, but is great when he's on game. But yeah, 800 mill spent, and it's almost impossible to point of a transfer that has been a succes beyond doubt.

 

[Jezpeza]

To be fair, we've bought player after player, they've just been useless - Bailly and Darmian for the positions mentioned, for example. Ferguson left us light in midfield and we invested heavily in Schweinsteiger, Fellaini, Schneiderlin, Matic, Herrera and Pogba - only the last 2 have been any good (and Matic for the first month).

I feel we’ve gone for some B team signings tbh. If we hadnt wasted all that money on fellaini, scchneiderlin matic and bastian we could just of had one really good midfielder. If one wasnt available, we may as well of used a youth player and waited for the right one. People forget that Fergie used players like Gibson, Cleverley, O’Shea etc to fill squad positions. Ultimately they werent good enough and were sold or never considered starters however they didn't cost anything and weren't on ridiculous wages. Same story at centre half - rojo, jones, bailly, are about 80m quidsworth of B team squad player material. They offer nothing more than Tuanzabe or TFM or Evans would have if he’d stayed, but cost crazy money. Rafael sold and replaced by Darmian. Such bad management of transfers.

 

[United58]

I feel we’ve gone for some B team signings tbh. If we hadnt wasted all that money on fellaini, scchneiderlin matic and bastian we could just of had one really good midfielder. If one wasnt available, we may as well of used a youth player and waited for the right one. People forget that Fergie used players like Gibson, Cleverley, O’Shea etc to fill squad positions. Ultimately they werent good enough and were sold or never considered starters however they didn't cost anything and weren't on ridiculous wages. Same story at centre half - rojo, jones, bailly, are about 80m quidsworth of B team squad player material. They offer nothing more than Tuanzabe or TFM or Evans would have if he’d stayed, but cost crazy money. Rafael sold and replaced by Darmian. Such bad management of transfers.

Yeah it would have been good for an AWB/Maguire signing sooner, big money on a banker. Just look at Liverpool with Allison/van Dijk. We did do it with Di Maria and Mata tbf but they were both 'oh look at these shiny toys that are available' and not well thought out transfers (how many games has Mata actually played for us at CAM?).

 

[Gehrman]

He didn't sign a single noteworthy player during his time. Not a single one. He took over a team in turmoil during the Benitez era. He won it, not twice in a row, which was already unprecedented, but three times with the same squad and youth players who are mostly slightly above average. People forget what Guardiola inherited. Messi is the game changer. Etoo and al were top notch. He spent a lot of money on players that didn't really work out either. He fell out of favour with Guardiola and Ibrahimovic. Zidane, regardless of what you think of his current managerial abilities, was a miracle worker.

Ancelotti had also just won the CL recently with Real. Zidane was certainly a miracle worker, but all the foundations for succes were there.

 

[Jezpeza]

Yeah it would have been good for an AWB/Maguire signing sooner, big money on a banker. Just look at Liverpool with Allison/van Dijk. We did do it with Di Maria and Mata tbf but they were both 'oh look at these shiny toys that are available' and not well thought out transfers (how many games has Mata actually played for us at CAM?).

Seems quite contradictory i’d admit, but yes the big money signings haven't worked out well either, which makes things even worse. Mata was very good when he first joined us I thought but we now play him RW and it doesn't work. Di Maria, again, was a big money marquee signing. But was a Real madrid castoff. And i think we signed him before we thought about how he fitted into our plans. Baffles me why we signed Lukaku, who we all knew was lethal running behind, and running at people, and then started playing long balls at him when it was always obvious he had the touch of a concrete wall. Dont know why we signed Fred either.

The mixture of bargain bin signings and expensive flops is why we have so many useless players and a jumble of a squad. We need to sort out some sort of long term vision, either a DoF or just a general agreement about what sort of players to sign

 

[AshRK]

To be fair, we've bought player after player, they've just been useless - Bailly and Darmian for the positions mentioned, for example. Ferguson left us light in midfield and we invested heavily in Schweinsteiger, Fellaini, Schneiderlin, Matic, Herrera and Pogba - only the last 2 have been any good (and Matic for the first month).

Not denying that but so have city and even they have had some flops especially between 2013 to 2016 purchases they have bought some real duds but the smart thing they have done is replaced them with better quality which we have not done.

To put things in perspective, we have bought 28 players since 2013 summer. This also includes players like Varela, Valdes, Lee Grant etc. In comparison city have signed 37 players since then. In this period they have signed flops like Bony, Negredo, Fernando, Navas, Jovetic, Demichellis, Mangala, Nolito, Moreno, Bravo to name some. What is even more interesting is City have signed 20 first team players since Pep took over in comparison to 14 signed by us. Whereas City's board backed Pep by letting Zabaleta, CLichy, Sagna, Neves, Mangala, Hart, Demichellis and many others leave we still have average players like Young, Jones, Darmian, Rojo still here and others like Valencia, Fellaini were sold recently. It is what you call grave mismanagement by the people at the top.

 

[United58]

We need to sort out some sort of long term vision, either a DoF or just a general agreement about what sort of players to sign

Even the way Ole is going about his signings is much better than the last 3 managers. Hopefully every manager from now on has a long term vision with attacking football.

 

[United58]

Not denying that but so have city and even they have had some flops especially between 2013 to 2016 purchases they have bought some real duds but the smart thing they have done is replaced them with better quality which we have not done.

To put things in perspective, we have bought 28 players since 2013 summer. This also includes players like Varela, Valdes, Lee Grant etc. In comparison city have signed 37 players since then. In this period they have signed flops like Bony, Negredo, Fernando, Navas, Jovetic, Demichellis, Mangala, Nolito, Moreno, Bravo to name some. What is even more interesting is City have signed 20 first team players since Pep took over in comparison to 14 signed by us. Whereas City's board backed Pep by letting Zabaleta, CLichy, Sagna, Neves, Mangala, Hart, Demichellis and many others leave we still have average players like Young, Jones, Darmian, Rojo still here and others like Valencia, Fellaini were sold recently. It is what you call grave mismanagement by the people at the top.

Oh yeah, I'm certainly in the 'Pep is cheque-book manager #1 along with José' camp.

 

[adexkola]

I like him, but he has nothing to show that's on the level of Ferguson when he took over, Mourinho with Porto or even Zidane's three successive CL.

This is an insane take.

 

[AshRK]

I like him, but he has nothing to show that's on the level of Ferguson when he took over, Mourinho with Porto or even Zidane's three successive CL.

He is a far better manager than Zidane. He has been a hugely influential manager one that will always be regarded, just like sir alex , wenger, Jose and even Klopp. Zidane may have won 3 CL but I don't think he will ever be regarded similar to those names.

 

[cyberman]

We crashed out to some shit teams under Fergie too. Like Basel.

Yes, when we were shite. This is the greatest league side we have ever seen.
When sir Alex got the team he wanted in 08 we set records. 3 finals in 4 years. Madrid 5 finals in 6. Bayern's multiple finals run, Atletico got there twice in three years, Liverpool have reached two finals in a row twice in 15 odd years.
This cup competition logic is nonsense. The best sides in world football get there regardless. The only reason a Pep side has gone past a quarter final in his last 4 attempts is because of horrendous ref decisions when Juve dominate Pep Bayern in Germany.
This is a massive season for Pep and his CL credentials. Teams find it too easy to score v his sides. I just did a quick search so im positive my numbers are just off but since he won the CL with Barca, the proceeding 6 CL ties that have seen his side eliminated have seen 34 odd goals scored across those 6 ties.
Thats horrendous quite frankly. That's not luck, that's a complete lack of control.
Posters were quick to say Jose CL tactics were outdated since his Madrid days but Pep has been e wry bit as bad in that regard

 

[Dancfc]

People who try to convince themselves Pep isn't a great manager must be so exhausted, the mental gymnastics that must take.

 

[matt10000]

The mixture of bargain bin signings and expensive flops is why we have so many useless players and a jumble of a squad. We need to sort out some sort of long term vision, either a DoF or just a general agreement about what sort of players to sign

isn’t the buy young and hungry with a preference for british based exactly this?

 

[adexkola]

People who try to convince themselves Pep isn't a great manager must be so exhausted, the mental gymnastics that must take.

Equal parts hilarious and bewildering.

 

[ThierryHenry14]

People who try to convince themselves Pep isn't a great manager must be so exhausted, the mental gymnastics that must take.

He is the best manager in the game at the moment. Yes he spent a lot of money to build his team but so does every other manager in the top team as well. He has a clear vision on how he wants his team play. His team doesn't rely on a Messi or CR7, and is not built around a super star. He will stay with Man City for a long time I am afraid.

 

[Sweech]

This is all very interesting reading for a supporter of neither side. Not to mention a side that constantly gets criticized for not spending enough on here.

Some parts very intriguing and well thought out, others showing a complete and utter lack of self awareness that borders on parody.

 

[cheeky_backheel]

People who try to convince themselves Pep isn't a great manager must be so exhausted, the mental gymnastics that must take.

It doesnt take any gymnastics when the evidence is there for everyone to see.

If you deem success outside of context to be your measure of a great manager, then Zidane (with 3 consecutive CL wins) is the greatest manager of the modern era, but if you consider the resources available to the manager and the context, then neither Pep nor Zidane would qualify.

Pep has yet to show that his presence is the difference maker in the club's success e.g. any good manager would succeed at Barca with Messi+Xavi+iniesta and co, or at Citeh given the kind of resources available. In fact, even a terrible manager like Mancini was able to win titles with Citeh while Pep (has) failed to deliver CL glory with Bayern (who won it before he took over) and Citeh. Even Mourinho has tackled more difficult projects (with varying level of success/failure) than Pep

Pep might have a great manager in him, but he hasnt done anything to show it imo

 

[Dancfc]

It doesnt take any gymnastics when the evidence is there for everyone to see.

If you deem success outside of context to be your measure of a great manager, then Zidane (with 3 consecutive CL wins) is the greatest manager of the modern era, but if you consider the resources available to the manager and the context, then neither Pep nor Zidane would qualify.

Pep has yet to show that his presence is the difference maker in the club's success e.g. any good manager would succeed at Barca with Messi+Xavi+iniesta and co, or at Citeh given the kind of resources available. In fact, even a terrible manager like Mancini was able to win titles with Citeh while Pep (has) failed to deliver CL glory with Bayern (who won it before he took over) and Citeh. Even Mourinho has tackled more difficult projects (with varying level of success/failure) than Pep

Pep might have a great manager in him, but he hasnt done anything to show it imo

The reason why he doesn't "take challenges" is because he doesn't have too. In any industry you will have to be a complete idiot to take jobs you're well overqualified for. If you had a successful business making you good money would you give that all up and take on evening shifts in Tesco?

The job he done at Barca (which was incredible regardless of who he had available in the books) has given him the pick of top jobs for life bar a Jose esque meltdown, the circumstances in how he got the Barca job may have been a lucky break, but everything since has been anything but.

Yes money can make you successful to a point, but to build the sheer domination and fear factor Pep does takes a lot more than just a wallet, he's had fellow top managers like Jose and Conte shitting themselves so badly at the thought of facing him they parked triple deckers (with expensively assembled teams themselves) and kept the bus there even after going behind, even a stubborn philosopher like Sarri altered his tactics to try and compete.

 

[LVGWay]

His spending isn’t insane, Pep is a winner and that’s why he deserves to be backed at his clubs, opposed to some insert average manager here, as they’d just waste it on shit. Pep has won 20 odd trophies in 10 years with his ‘insane’ spending, think I’d take that over our last 10 years since Ronaldo left

Loads of Glazer puppets on this forum think it’s illegal to spend money on world class players. It’s what United did before the Glazer rot set in. Keane, Cole, Yorke, RVN, Rio, Ronaldo, Rooney all cost fortunes at the time, and you should see their prices would be with inflation, and guess what? All were top signings and won us the biggest trophies

 

[kaiser1]

People who try to convince themselves Pep isn't a great manager must be so exhausted, the mental gymnastics that must take.

You know. He has to lead Yeovil town from the championship to win the CL just like Messi has to go to Luton and prove himself

I don't know of any career where a top dog will have to go prove himself at a mediocre job to be acknowledged as the best. When you are a top developer at Microsoft, you need to prove yourself at mom and pop tacos to be acknowledged

With Peps status, only few teams can afford him, he will only look at top teams until he flops and has to start all over again

 

[fergiesarmy1]

You know. He has to lead Yeovil town from the championship to win the CL just like Messi has to go to Luton and prove himself

I don't know of any career where a top dog will

You know. He has to lead Yeovil town from the championship to win the CL just like Messi has to go to Luton and prove himself

I don't know of any career where a top dog will have to go prove himself at a mediocre job to be acknowledged as the best. When you are a top developer at Microsoft, you need to prove yourself at mom and pop tacos to be acknowledged

With Peps status, only few teams can afford him, he will only look at top teams until he flops and has to start all over again

Prefer to see a manager progress (aka Ferguson, cough etc) than take over the 3 richest clubs in each league then be amazed when he wins the titles of those leagues (no European success either apart from at Barca) makes it decidedly less impressive to me also.

 

[Dancfc]

Prefer to see a manager progress (aka Ferguson, cough etc) than take over the 3 richest clubs in each league then be amazed when he wins the titles of those leagues (no European success either apart from at Barca) makes it decidedly less impressive to me also.

Fergie didn't just walse into United say abracadabra and start pissing on the whole of the league, he was given almost a decades worth of patience and trust in the market to get to that point.

Had a mid 40s Fergie gone to United today he'd have the money to skip most of the teething process and get to the success far quicker, would that make him a lesser manager? Of course not.

 

[fergiesarmy1]

Fergie didn't just walse into United say abracadabra and start pissing on the whole of the league, he was given almost a decades worth of patience and trust in the market to get to that point.

Had a mid 40s Fergie gone to United today he'd have the money to skip most of the teething process and get to the success far quicker, would that make him a lesser manager? Of course not.

He also took over a team that wasn’t winning the league nearly every year unlike Barca, Bayern and not so much city when he took over but very easy to see why they are now considering they have 2 world class players for every position. 95% of them bought for big money.

 

[SqualorVictoria]

He also took over a team that wasn’t winning the league nearly every year unlike Barca, Bayern and not so much city when he took over but very easy to see why they are now considering they have 2 world class players for every position. 95% of them bought for big money.

So... What's your point? Guardiola should have said no to Laporta and Begiristain back then after a successful stint at the 'B' team? Which, by the way, was his club.

 

[fergiesarmy1]

So... What's your point? Guardiola should have said no to Laporta and Begiristain back then after a successful stint at the 'B' team? Which, by the way, was his club.

My point was fergie wasn’t taking over a team that usually won its league, pretty simple.

 

[tomaldinho1]

The reason why he doesn't "take challenges" is because he doesn't have too. In any industry you will have to be a complete idiot to take jobs you're well overqualified for. If you had a successful business making you good money would you give that all up and take on evening shifts in Tesco?

The job he done at Barca (which was incredible regardless of who he had available in the books) has given him the pick of top jobs for life bar a Jose esque meltdown, the circumstances in how he got the Barca job may have been a lucky break, but everything since has been anything but.

Yes money can make you successful to a point, but to build the sheer domination and fear factor Pep does takes a lot more than just a wallet, he's had fellow top managers like Jose and Conte shitting themselves so badly at the thought of facing him they parked triple deckers (with expensively assembled teams themselves) and kept the bus there even after going behind, even a stubborn philosopher like Sarri altered his tactics to try and compete.

I think issue with the Pep loving that most on here have isn't that he's not a top manager (because he clearly is), it's that you see comments like this.

As an example... Pep & Conte arrived in the PL at the same time, one of them took over a team that had finished 10th, went on to set a points record for the PL and dominated the league from start to finish. The other was Pep. There's no denying he is a great manager but the hyperbole around him is insane, he finished 15 points off Conte's Chelsea and then, hence the title of this thread, went on a rage spending spree despite having an already phenomenal squad. Am I saying Conte is a better manager than Pep, no. But would Pep's trophy cabinet be as full if he had the same resources as other managers, I highly doubt it.

 

[Dancfc]

I think issue with the Pep loving that most on here have isn't that he's not a top manager (because he clearly is), it's that you see comments like this.

As an example... Pep & Conte arrived in the PL at the same time, one of them took over a team that had finished 10th, went on to set a points record for the PL and dominated the league from start to finish. The other was Pep. There's no denying he is a great manager but the hyperbole around him is insane, he finished 15 points off Conte's Chelsea and then, hence the title of this thread, went on a rage spending spree despite having an already phenomenal squad. Am I saying Conte is a better manager than Pep, no. But would Pep's trophy cabinet be as full if he had the same resources as other managers, I highly doubt it.

Im not denying Conte is a top manager Infact that's the whole point.

Pep teams puts the frighteners on fellow top managers from a tactical POV to the point they regularly play like a plucky underdog hoping to scrape to a replay. The sheer control his team's have on games is something I've never seen before.

I don't particularly like Pep and I certainly have no love lost with the teams he's managed, but this notion that he's just some random Joe who's winning the lottery constantly is borderline insanity.

 

[He'sRaldo]

Pep teams puts the frighteners on fellow top managers from a tactical POV to the point they regularly play like a plucky underdog hoping to scrape to a replay. The sheer control his team's have on games is something I've never seen before.

This is an interesting point. In the CL, Pep has gone out to managers who decide to take him on. Why? Because there's no points at stake. It's simply win or you're gone home.

I think the nature of the league makes it such that managers try to gamble on getting a point, and that's where Pep's system shines and the 'total domination' kicks in. When top teams take him on, he has tended to lose that control he usually has during league games. I think that's why we've heard it said that to beat City and Pep you need to press them high, take them on, etc.

 

[tomaldinho1]

Im not denying Conte is a top manager Infact that's the whole point.

Pep teams puts the frighteners on fellow top managers from a tactical POV to the point they regularly play like a plucky underdog hoping to scrape to a replay. The sheer control his team's have on games is something I've never seen before.

I don't particularly like Pep and I certainly have no love lost with the teams he's managed, but this notion that he's just some random Joe who's winning the lottery constantly is borderline insanity.

I don't know anyone who thinks this - he clearly a good manager but has carefully chosen his moves.

My issue with his over-the-top fans is that he seems to only operate within a near perfect setup, otherwise he's not interested. So far, his peak was undeniably with Barcelona and with players from La Messia (this was originally a typo but I liked the pun so left it), since then it has been a very carefully planned career. Fair play to him, yes it's the easy option every time but he usually wins! I guess we'd all like to see him take on a project where he's not outright favourite to win a league and have endless wealth to fall back on if he doesn't but I understand why he doesn't want to do that. The fact he's come out today and said United, Chelsea and Arsenal are challengers is just ridiculous, he knows it's been City and Liverpool again this year and I think we'd all be surprised, despite how good Liverpool were last season, if City don't win the PL again.

 

[fergiesarmy1]

I don't know anyone who thinks this - he clearly a good manager but has carefully chosen his moves.

My issue with his over-the-top fans is that he seems to only operate within a near perfect setup, otherwise he's not interested. So far, his peak was undeniably with Barcelona and with players from La Messia (this was originally a typo but I liked the pun so left it), since then it has been a very carefully planned career. Fair play to him, yes it's the easy option every time but he usually wins! I guess we'd all like to see him take on a project where he's not outright favourite to win a league and have endless wealth to fall back on if he doesn't but I understand why he doesn't want to do that. The fact he's come out today and said United, Chelsea and Arsenal are challengers is just ridiculous, he knows it's been City and Liverpool again this year and I think we'd all be surprised, despite how good Liverpool were last season, if City don't win the PL again.

Great post, pretty much mirrors my thinking on him and his “managed” management career

Didn’t know he’d said that shite today though, he does talk a lot of shite which also irritates me, including his political bullshit which doesn’t seem to stretch as far as where his latest salary comes from.

 

[cyberman]

Im not denying Conte is a top manager Infact that's the whole point.

Pep teams puts the frighteners on fellow top managers from a tactical POV to the point they regularly play like a plucky underdog hoping to scrape to a replay. The sheer control his team's have on games is something I've never seen before.

I don't particularly like Pep and I certainly have no love lost with the teams he's managed, but this notion that he's just some random Joe who's winning the lottery constantly is borderline insanity.

Top sides regularly take Pep on in the CL and are constantly successfull against him.

 

[adexkola]

This is an interesting point. In the CL, Pep has gone out to managers who decide to take him on. Why? Because there's no points at stake. It's simply win or you're gone home.

I think the nature of the league makes it such that managers try to gamble on getting a point, and that's where Pep's system shines and the 'total domination' kicks in. When top teams take him on, he has tended to lose that control he usually has during league games. I think that's why we've heard it said that to beat City and Pep you need to press them high, take them on, etc.

You should look at his big game record across all leagues. Because the point you're trying to make doesn't make any sense when you look beyond the CL. Not for Pep or any other manager.

 

[adexkola]

Im not denying Conte is a top manager Infact that's the whole point.

Pep teams puts the frighteners on fellow top managers from a tactical POV to the point they regularly play like a plucky underdog hoping to scrape to a replay. The sheer control his team's have on games is something I've never seen before.

I don't particularly like Pep and I certainly have no love lost with the teams he's managed, but this notion that he's just some random Joe who's winning the lottery constantly is borderline insanity.

Bolded reminds me of this.

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[Harry190]

This is an insane take.

What team has he managed that was an outsider before achieving success consistently? Zidane's CL success is on a completely different scale.

 

[SquishyMcSquish]

Guardiola is a fantastic manager. Anybody that thinks a man employed by Barcelona and Barcelona, and then head hunted by City who changed the structure of the club to prepare for his vision, is some average manager who all these top clubs are just fooled by .. is being ridiculous. Managers in the past have had incredible resources at City but struggled to achieve anywhere close to what he's built there, and these managers were hardly complete nobody's.

Does he pick and choose his jobs carefully? Absolutely. Who wouldn't do that? It's not a game of football manager where you're doing it for fun, it's his reputation at stake at every job he goes for. One or two failures at clubs can lead to a collapse in his reputation ala Mourinho (one of the most successful managers of our generation) so it would be incredibly risky to 'take a challenge' when the only upside is proving people wrong, people I doubt he gives two shits about.

The resources he has at City are obviously insane, but that doesn't mean it's a doddle to build a side which completely dominates the domestic scene, particularly when you play in a league where all the top six have tremendous resources of their own. He keeps up a level of consistency in the league which is pretty remarkable in what people consider the most competitive around. The only question mark are the European performances, but the CL is an unpredictable beast at the best of times and whilst I'm sure it'll be a disappointment to Pep, going out in what is a knockout competition is no huge embarrassment. Anything can happen in these tournaments.