I still believe Pep Guardiola is the right candidate for rebuilding Manchester City, but fans will need to be patient as he rebuilds the club.
Manchester City fans were jubilant when the club announced that Pep Guardiola would replace Manuel Pellegrini as manager. I, too, applauded the move.
I’ve always believed that Guardiola is an exceptional manager. His ideas are spot on about how football should be played.
Just how does Guardiola’s philosophy work?
Courtesy: Daily Mail
Guardiola likes to know players on an intimate level. He starts by identifying the most intelligent player on the team—a player he calls “the player with a pause.”
That player needs to be capable of holding onto the ball a bit longer than the average midfielder. His responsibilities include ball retention, interception, and maintaining possession as he plays the ball out from the back.
This special role—played by Xavi Hernandez and Phillipp Lahm at Barcelona and Bayern Munich, respectively—has been the secret to Guardiola’s success. But I’m not sure Guardiola has found that player at City. Fernandinho, Fernando, and Yaya Toure don’t fit what Guardiola is looking for.
At issue, then, is whether Pep’s philosophy will bring success to City.
Yes, he started this season brilliantly—winning his first ten matches. Then the situation turned as teams began exploiting City’s weaknesses. Premier League teams, especially big-name clubs, play a counter-attacking style of football with high intensity. Those tactics have exposed flaws in City’s defence.
City faces another challenge, too. Pep doesn’t have the right players to play his kind of football. That may be why he reverted recently to a traditional 4-2-3-1 formation. The return of defender Vincent Kompany from long-term injury has boosted this change of mind.
Courtesy: Goal.com
Perhaps this tactical change is a temporary plan—in place until Pep is able to shape his team with the right players. As Guardiola said during a recent press conference: “Of course I would like to have physical, strong teams, good at headers, fast. I like that, but since the first time I arrived here, and hopefully I will stay here a long time, the team is going to play the way I want to play. I’m not going to dismiss that way.”
So, all in all, City owners and club fans should be disappointed with the unstable style of football they’ve witnessed under Guardiola. The lack of silverware this season is a sign of failure for a club that has spent a huge amount of money bringing in players.
Fans expected their team to compete for a Premier League title and they want to enjoy the brand of football Guardiola played when he was at Barcelona.
How Guardiola goes about his transfer business during this summer could determine what to expect next season.
For one thing, I think his decision to send Joe Hart on loan to Torino F.C. was a bad move. Another subject of debate is Guardiola’s preference of Gabriel Jesus over Sergio Aguero at striker. Aguero is one of the best strikers in the world. The situation needs to be sorted out before the beginning of next season.
The bottom line is that City fans need to be patient with their manager. Pep is continuing to assemble a squad that’s capable of competing on all fronts.
While it remains to be seen whether Pep can find the players he’s searching for, one thing is for sure: next season City fans will want to see a more resilient and cohesive team.
