Pep Guardiola: the greatest manager of the modern era
Philosopher, strategist, genius.
The UCL Final 2023 was special. It made Manchester City just the second new team to win the Champions League this century. More importantly, it marked the coronation of Guardiola as the greatest manager of the modern era. This had been evident for a while. The Treble-clinching medal completed the formality.
Greatness
How do we define managerial greatness? The most common metric is trophies. Trophies are important. To be considered great, a manager must have won a major trophy. Without that, no tangible value is added.
It is however naive to judge a manager solely by the number of trophies they’ve won. As football proliferates, the number of trophies on offer increases. Also, what is the “weight” of a trophy? Is a continental trophy worth more than a domestic one? What about league quality?
Quantitative measures must be balanced by qualitative metrics. The specific job of a manager is to guide the team. The broader role, should a manager choose to accept it, is to further the game.
Defining new paradigms: this is the essence of true managerial greatness. Pozzo, Herrera, Sacchi, Cruyff and Michels progressed football thought. This century, Pep Guardiola took over.
