When Pep Guardiola became 'the thing he hated most'

Is there anything more terrifying than becoming something you once "hated" so much? Unfortunately, that's what's happening to Man City manager Pep Guardiola.

Guariola has changed his football philosophy 180 degrees - Photo: REUTERS

Every coach needs to evolve in tactics to keep up with the ever-changing game of football. Pep Guardiola is no exception. The Spaniard is gradually changing his ball-controlling, back-line style to a more pragmatic and calculated style.

A manifestation of that change in philosophy was the signing of goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma - whose style of play contrasted with Guardiola's previous goalkeeping standards.

Donnarumma is not good with his feet and is not good at developing the ball from deep, although there are times when he tries to do so.

For the first time in many transfer windows, Guardiola decided to sign a proper full-back in Rayan Aït-Nouri.

The Spanish coach has abandoned the stereotyped ball possession style that has persisted for many seasons.

Pep encourages Haaland after substituting the Norwegian player for the field - Photo: REUTERS

Pep's Man City are now ready to retreat to the underdog position. They accept the strange task of defending in a tight group, allowing the opponent to press them. Erling Haaland - who used to be a striker "hanging in a hammock in the penalty area" - is also instructed to retreat to the penalty area to defend like a center back.

Haaland’s backsliding makes him more unpredictable. It was the Norwegian who provided the pass that started the attack and finished it off with a curling goal against Arsenal. But Haaland’s wide play means City are no longer able to apply sustained pressure.

Against Arsenal, Pep Guardiola chose the right approach: defensive counter-attack. But no one could believe that Pep would deploy such a negative style of play that people thought the person leading Man City against Arsenal was Jose Mourinho.

For the first time in his career, Pep played with a back five. He then brought in John Stone, making the defensive front thicker with four central defenders. But what shocked the fans the most was that he withdrew Erling Haaland and brought on defensive midfielder Nico Gonzalez to increase the interception ability.

Guardiola's emotions in the draw with Arsenal - Photo: REUTERS

That means Man City have no real striker. World football has seen many teams play with false strikers. But his withdrawal of Haaland is not aimed at any particular tactical element in attack. Simply, Pep wants to focus on the defensive side.

The way Man City set up their defense with layers upon layers of blue players at first glance seems like a betrayal of the team’s dignity. Didn’t Pep once criticize Mourinho when the Portuguese coach did the same thing? And now look, is Pep any different from Mourinho?

It would be terrible if one day we realized that we had become the thing we hated the most. But what turned Pep into a ruthless "villain" at Emirates?

He's afraid of losing, that's probably the answer many people give. But no. Pep has been preparing for this kind of play since last season. He just changed it too suddenly.

And Pep cannot be blamed because Arsenal wanted to "eat Man City alive" right after the whistle blew.

Pep Guardiola is a coach made in heaven. He understands that after so many years in England, everything must change to survive. His team cannot play in a localized way from season to season. If Pep sticks to his style, the destination can only be failure.

A few years ago, Guardiola certainly did not think he would play such a "defensive" style of football against Arsenal. If there was a time machine to bring Pep during his peak years to Emirates on the evening of September 21, he certainly would not recognize himself sitting in the Man City technical area.

So, in life, nothing can be predicted. Any judgment is only true for a certain period of time or can only answer the judgment. But let's ignore all that, it's interesting to see Man City players gasping for breath when playing defense!

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/khi-pep-guardiola-tro-thanh-thu-ong-ghet-nhat-20250922123419596.htm