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Pep Guardiola has managed a few of the highest footballers on the earth.
The Manchester Metropolis boss, who’s about to show 50, stepped into administration 12 years in the past and remains to be considered one of the best coaches in world soccer.
All of it started in Barcelona, the place Pep revolutionised the sport along with his ‘Tiki-Taka’ philosophy as his all-conquering facet etched their title as one of many greatest teams to play the beautiful game.
He then moved to Germany the place he led Bayern Munich to 3 Bundesliga titles on the bounce, with silverware additionally coming through the DFB-Pokal, UEFA Tremendous Cup and FIFA Membership World Cup.
A transfer to Manchester Metropolis adopted in 2016 and but extra silverware has gone his manner in England.
He has gained two Premier League titles, three League Cups and the FA Cup throughout his tenure on the Etihad, however the Champions League has been the one trophy to elude him.
Pep’s success is aware of no bounds, however he owes a whole lot of his achievements to a few of the extraordinary skills he has had the pleasure of teaching.
As the nice tactician turns 50, we at talkSPORT.com have drawn up our greatest XI of gamers he has managed…
Goalkeeper: Manuel Neuer
A real goalkeeping nice, Neuer flourished for Guardiola at Bayern Munich, successful three Bundesliga titles, the DFB-Pokal, UEFA Tremendous Cup and FIFA Membership World Cup.
Victor Valdes can rely himself unfortunate to not make the XI, nonetheless, as he was additionally an ever-present in Pep’s Barcelona facet that reinvented the attractive recreation for 4 years from 2008.
Defence: Dani Alves, Vincent Kompany, Gerard Pique, David Alaba
Veteran Brazilian defender Alves, formally the most decorated player in history, is a should within the XI given his position within the Barca facet which gained 14 trophies in 4 years.
He was Pep’s third most used playe on the Camp Nou, that includes 208 occasions and racking up a return of 15 objectives and 67 assists.
Captain unbelievable Kompany additionally earns a spot for his sensible management within the three years at Metropolis.
He was instrumental for Metropolis in Guardiola’s two Premier League title victories, with that memorable winner towards Leicester in 2019 one of many most iconic in the division’s history.
Partnering him in central defence was the imperious Pique, who rejoined Barca from Manchester United in 2008 and went on to win the treble in his first season below Guardiola and way more silverware thereafter.
Carles Puyol can rely himself unfortunate to not make the XI, however his prime years arguably got here earlier than Pep arrived.
Finishing the again 4 is present Bayern Munich star Alaba, who featured in 124 of Guardiola’s 161 video games in cost on the Allianz Enviornment, bagging 11 objectives and helping 12 extra.
The Austrian fashioned a devastating partnership with Franck Ribery on the left flank which noticed three consecutive titles arrive on the Allianz Enviornment.
Midfield: Sergio Busquets, Xavi, Kevin De Bruyne
Guardiola acknowledges the wealth of expertise he has labored with makes it onerous to choose a beginning XI, however Kevin De Bruyne can be there.
“I used to be a fortunate individual being in Barcelona, Bayern Munich and right here, I practice unbelievable gamers,” he advised mancity.com.
“However if you happen to ask who’s greatest keeper, I couldn’t reply you as a result of it wouldn’t be respectful for an additional ‘keeper if I select Victor Valdes, [Manuel] Neuer, or Eddie with what he’s doing proper now – I couldn’t say.
“However Kevin after all. It’s not essential to be a wise man, a sensible man – each individual in world soccer is aware of Kevin can be there.”
On the subject of holding midfielders, Javier Mascherano, Xabi Alonso and Fernandinho have been excellent, nonetheless, Busquets was the perfect on the earth below Guardiola in his years at Camp Nou.
His position in expertly breaking apart opposition assaults was pivotal to Barca’s type of play and so they wouldn’t have been as profitable as they have been with out him and that is with out mentioning Xavi or Andres Iniesta.
Like these two in Spain, De Bruyne has been integral to Metropolis’s rise to the top of English soccer, that includes 243 occasions for Metropolis with a sensational return of 60 objectives and 103 assists.
Assault: Andres Iniesta, Robert Lewandowski, Lionel Messi
With Xavi and De Bruyne in entrance of Busquets, Iniesta, due to this fact, earns a spot on the flanks.
The Spaniard spent a good chunk of his trip large at Camp Nou and was nonetheless world class in that place.
He produced a return of 23 objectives and 53 assists in his 81 appearances at Barcelona below Guardiola, ending within the high three of the Ballon d’Or awards thrice throughout this era.
Arguably the best to ever play the sport, Messi is the primary title on the group sheet, however is used on the appropriate flank on this XI reasonably than within the false 9 position that he adopted below Guardiola.
Messi, who has scored a outstanding 640 objectives in 741 matches for the Catalans, was in his prime below Guardiola and often says he was the best manager he has worked with.
In 2012, he hit unprecedented heights with 91 objectives in a calendar 12 months: 79 with Barça (59 in La Liga, 13 within the Champions League, 5 within the Copa del Rey and a pair of within the Spanish Tremendous Cup).
Thierry Henry and Sergio Aguero could nicely really feel onerous achieved by, however, just one no.9 could be chosen and present Bayern ace Lewandowski has to get the nod up entrance within the XI.
The Pole, who was unlucky to not win the Ballon d’Or within the COVID-hit 2020, was sensational for Guardiola in Germany, hitting 110 league objectives in three Bundesliga seasons while the Spaniard was on the helm of Bayern Munich.
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