20 THE PREM ERA
W
hen Pep Guardiola arrived
in Manchester in 2016,
he was greeted with
a mixture of revered
excitement and intense scepticism.
While many observers were excited to
see the Catalan coach, widely regarded
as the finest in the world, in action, others
insisted that he would be quickly found
out by the English Premier League.
“Tiki-taka” would simply not work
on these shores, ran the argument.
Moreover, after a campaign in which
a footballing miracle had been achieved
in the shape of Leicester City’s 2015-
title win, the idea of this privileged super
coach being drafted into the richest
team in the land, having served his
apprenticeship at Barcelona and Bayern
Munich, was jarring. It would take
something absolutely exceptional for
Guardiola to impress in his new home.
Indeed, during that first campaign it
seemed that the sceptics had a point.
Harsh lessons were dealt out, most
notably byJamie Vardy in a 4-2 defeat
to Leicester, and Romelu Lukaku in a
4-0 loss at Goodison Park. Welcome
to the Premier League, Pep.
Yet Guardiola took those lessons and
learned from them. That summer, over
£200 million was spent as the hapless
Claudio Bravo was replaced in goal by
Ederson, while three new full-backs
also arrived, including Kyle Walker.
On September 9, 2017, Manchester
City thrashed Liverpool 5-0 at the Etihad
to go top of the table, and stayed there
for the rest of the season.
Simply put, Guardiola’s side swept
aside all in front of them. Once they had
beaten everyone in the league, they
chased history, setting new records for
points, goals and away wins. The doubters
asking whether Pep could be effective in
England had been well and truly silenced.
Subsequent City teams may have
performed better in Europe or faced
stiffer challenges fromJurgen Klopp’s
Liverpool. But they are unlikely to ever
match the numbers that Pep’s side racked
up in that first title-winning campaign.Iconic Team:
Man City 2017-
Pep Guardiola’s first Premier League title broke all kinds of records –
most notably being the first and, to date, only team to reach 100 points
THE MANAGERS