Just like when "The Citizens" successfully defended their Premier League title in mid-May, fans and experts alike, in addition to praising Man City's "treble" after the Champions League final on the morning of June 11th, have calmly returned to considering the role of coach Pep Guardiola in Man City's miraculous run.
Take Barcelona to the next level.
Looking at the banners, such as "Pep is changing football," or the images of the Spanish manager that have flooded sports newspapers in England and around the world over the past 24 hours, even someone indifferent to football can understand just how important Pep is to Manchester City's glorious journey, one of the new prides of English football.
Before the Champions League final, Thierry Henry, in his role as a television football commentator, called Pep Guardiola "the best coach in history." On another television channel, Rio Ferdinand declared: "Pep is greatest because of his influence and his ability to inspire others to learn from him, something even Sir Alex Ferguson or Carlo Ancelotti couldn't do."
Coach Pep Guardiola has achieved incredible feats in European football. Photo: REUTERS
Many leading experts agree with the views of these two former legends. The late coach Johan Cruyff once recounted that when Pep took over as Barcelona's head coach in 2008, the first thing he stated at the club was, "We must elevate the club to a new level with more perfect football." As someone who always strives for perfection, Pep and his team won the treble in his first season, and in just four years, Barcelona under Pep won a total of 14 titles, including two Champions League titles and the unprecedented sextuple in the 2009-2010 season.
A desire for innovation and creativity.
Having joined Bayern Munich in 2013, Pep led the "Bavarian giants" to three consecutive Bundesliga titles, the most important of the seven trophies he brought to the Allianz Arena in three seasons. Joining Manchester City, Pep Guardiola successfully conquered every title in England, including winning five Premier League titles in the last six seasons, three of which were consecutive.
If titles are "the measure of success," as coach Jose Mourinho said, then the Catalan manager is on his way to becoming the best, not just because of his collection of trophies, but because of his endless passion: always yearning for his team to innovate, play better, and be more creative. Every day he wakes up early to immediately text his colleagues to convey his ideas; he works tirelessly and even takes a nap at lunchtime... Pep, in just 14 years, has already won 35 major titles in the top 3 European leagues.
If, more than a decade ago, Pep's Barcelona reshaped world football, now, under his leadership, Manchester City has showcased a nearly perfect style of football, overwhelming even the strongest opponents in the world today. Many colleagues, deeply imbued with Pep's football philosophy and tactics, acknowledge being greatly influenced by the 52-year-old, from initially just Xavi Hernandez (Barcelona) and Mikel Arteta (Arsenal) to now including Roberto De Zerbi (Brighton), Erik ten Hag (Manchester United), Vincent Kompany (Burnley), and others…
Many experts believe that as long as Pep Guardiola remains with Man City, coupled with the almost inexhaustible financial resources of their Arab owners, the team will create even more miracles, some of which are unprecedented in English and European football.
Pep has indeed spent £1.074 billion since arriving at Etihad, freely buying players until he had his ideal squad. If you say money helped Man City win the Champions League, then ask PSG – a wealthy club with plenty of money but certainly lacking a Pep Guardiola to achieve success.
Italian football's European dream crumbles.
Fiorentina, AS Roma, and Inter Milan nearly caused an upset by having five representatives in the semi-finals of three European cups, with three of them reaching the final, but within just two weeks, they successively fell in the final matches of the Europa League, Europa Conference League, and Champions League.
Instead of winning at least one trophy, Italian football representatives all stumbled at the doorstep of glory and failed to bring home any titles. AS Roma took the lead in the Europa League final against Sevilla but were pegged back and then lost in the penalty shootout. Fiorentina then lost 1-2 to West Ham in the Europa Conference League final, even though their opponents had only just narrowly avoided relegation in England.
In Europe's most prestigious tournament, Inter Milan created numerous opportunities but failed to capitalize on them in the final against Manchester City on the morning of June 11th. The 0-1 defeat to Man City only prolonged Inter Milan's pain, as they had waited 13 years for this moment of triumph.
Having suffered consecutive defeats in all three European Cup finals, Italian football will have to wait a long time before it can hope for a comeback. According to many experts, the recent breakthrough of Serie A representatives stems from the exceptional efforts of each team, rather than the overall progress of Italian football.
Financial difficulties continue to plague Serie A, as in recent years. This is why newly crowned champions Napoli are certain to part ways with coach Luciano Spalletti due to a conflict with the club president; Inter Milan are heavily in debt, estimated at nearly $1 billion; and Jose Mourinho is likely to leave AS Roma because his demands for player reinforcements have not been met...
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