Pep Guardiola’s great mentor and inspiration Johan Cruyff once said: “Winning is an important thing, but to have your own style, to have people copy you, to admire you… this is the greatest gift.”
As Manchester City prepare for the departure of the Catalan genius after a decade in charge, Guardiola’s legacy can be seen as a monument to the legendary Dutchman who cast his spell over him as a youngster at Barcelona.
Cruyff said: “Winning is just one day. A reputation will last a lifetime.”
Guardiola’s will, indeed, last forever.
Six Premier Leagues, the Champions League, three FA Cups, five League Cups, the Uefa Super Cup and Fifa Club World Cup won – all in his own brilliant style, or at least the style he feels Cruyff bequeathed him.
And it is one that has been admired and copied – a gift left behind for the domestic game to study for years to come.
Guardiola openly admits – with a hefty helping of modesty, it should be stressed – he “knew nothing” about football until he fell under Cruyff’s instruction, describing him as: “The most influential person in football history.”
The high point of Guardiola’s relationship with Cruyff came when Barcelona won the European Cup (now Champions League) for the first time against Sampdoria at Wembley in 1992. He was the Barca academy graduate who took his place in the so-called ‘Dream Team’ alongside stellar names such as goalscorer Ronald Koeman, Michael Laudrup and Hristo Stoichkov.
Now, as Cruyff did in Spain, Guardiola has created a legacy that has changed the face of football at every level in England.
In his decade at City, Guardiola has not just shaped elite football and the game in the league’s pyramids. He has had an impact at every level down to grassroots, where even junior coaches adopt his strategies.
As Guardiola has micro-managed City’s players like a great conductor from the sidelines, he has produced teams, styles, and tactical innovations that will provide a framework for the modern game, now and in the future.
Guardiola has effectively shaped the game’s future at all levels, from Manchester City themselves to the Premier League and throughout Europe.
Mikel Arteta, who is on the verge of beating City to the Premier League title with Arsenal, was given his first senior coaching post as Guardiola’s assistant.
Enzo Maresca, expected to succeed him at Manchester City, was another member of his coaching staff who then went to Leicester City, taking them back into the Premier League before winning the Europa Conference League and the Fifa Club World Cup at Chelsea.
Luis Enrique worked with Barcelona’s junior teams under Guardiola before succeeding him and winning the Champions League in 2015. He has since won it again with a superb team at Paris St-Germain and is now in a second successive final against Arsenal in Budapest.
Vincent Kompany, now flourishing at Bayern Munich, learned from Guardiola while Manchester City’s captain, while Xabi Alonso – just appointed as new Chelsea manager – worked under him when he moved from Real Madrid to Bayern Munich in 2014.
Quite simply, Guardiola’s fingerprints touch football at all levels.
Managers and coaches follow the method of playing out from the back, with the goalkeeper needing to be as good with his feet as with his hands. It was one of the reasons Guardiola jettisoned Joe Hart upon arrival at Etihad Stadium.
