Pep's goal
Pep Guardiola prepares for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup with a short break in Barcelona, where he seeks balance and puts Man City's failures behind him.
At 54, Pep has just endured the most turbulent season of his career. This is the second time he has failed to win any titles in his glorious coaching career.
Pep's journey has been overshadowed by unusual events, such as a run of just one win in 13 games in October-December 2024, coinciding with Rodri's serious injury.
After the storm, Man City struggled to qualify for the 2024/25 Champions League in the final rounds.
“Playing good football, creating a positive atmosphere, good team spirit… Trying to get the new players to bring the energy we need to lift the team. That way we can win more titles,” Guardiola shared about his immediate goals.
“You can’t win all the time,” he argues. “Michael Jordan, the greatest athlete I’ve ever seen, won only six NBA titles in 15 years. Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus lost more Grand Slams than they won. That’s just the way it is.”
Man City's next leg officially begins at 11pm on June 18 in Philadelphia ( Hanoi time), in the match against Wydad AC in the opening round of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
The tournament has attracted great interest from European football leaders because of its unprecedented financial potential – more than 110 million euros in prize money for the champion, a figure larger than the Champions League.
The so-called “Mundialito” (small World Cup) not only helps strengthen the financial strength of the clubs, but also acts as a test for the new season.
“I don’t want to prove anything to anyone,” Guardiola stressed. “I want to prove to myself that I can do it again. I don’t want to go through the same feeling as last season.”
“When you win, the wine tastes better and you sleep better. When you lose, it doesn't. When I lose, I'm miserable, I feel bad, I can't sleep. When I lose, I get very angry,” he admitted.
Man City bustling for tournament in America
FIFA allows each club to register a maximum of 36 players, along with a special transfer window from June 1-10.
Man City took advantage of this to recruit new players. Perhaps Pep Guardiola's team had the most excitement among the representatives attending the FIFA Club World Cup.
After breaking the winter transfer record, City welcomed three more important new players at a cost of more than 128 million euros: Tijjani Reijnders (from AC Milan; price 55 million euros), Rayan Ait-Nouri (Wolves; 36.8), Rayan Cherki (Lyon; 36.5). In addition, there is also Marcus Bettinelli from Chelsea to be the third goalkeeper.
Among these, Reijnders is considered the most important contract for Pep Guardiola to change the playing style for Man City, after the end of the Kevin de Bruyne era.
“Man City is one of the biggest clubs in the world , with the best coach, world -class players and fantastic facilities,” Reijnders said after signing a five-year contract.
The Dutch midfielder, who scored 15 goals and provided four assists for Milan last season, is optimistic: “Under Pep Guardiola, City have won a lot of titles. I want to contribute to maintaining that success with more achievements in the coming years.”
Reijnders is a modern central midfielder, good at winning the ball back and attacking. With not only De Bruyne gone, but also Mateo Kovacic injured, the 26-year-old is very important.
“He comes here with a wealth of experience at the highest level in Europe, both at club level and with the Netherlands national team,” said Hugo Viana, Man City's sporting director, praising the new signing.
January signing Nico Gonzalez has failed to live up to expectations.
Now, Pep is waiting for the difference from Reijnders – the best midfielder in Serie A last season – to support Rodri, who has just returned after 8 months of injury.
“Success is the number of times you get up after falling,” Guardiola said. “Fall and get up, fall and get up… That is the greatest success.” He wants to stand on the podium in America.
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/man-city-on-ao-fifa-club-world-cup-2025-tham-vong-pep-guardiola-2410737.html
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