Is Pep the greatest manager of all time?

Been watching the Sir Alex BBC documentary. Just from the first episode how can anyone think Pep is a better manager than him.

After narrowly losing the title to Blackburn he sold 3 of his best players and replaced them with kids. Everyone couldn’t understand the decision yet they went on to win the double. That’s before you even consider his achievements at Aberdeen.

When has Pep ever introduced kids to replace serial winners? He’s had 2 seasons of struggles at City. Both times he’s gone out and spent as much money as he possible. They’ve already spent €140m this month and want to buy 3 more players.
 
Now we have confirmed from a non Albanian source that Rummenigge wanted Xavi when Barcelona was about to push him out

Seems we are making progress Since
You went from
Pughnichi said:
Hahahahahh

I’m sure Bayern and Barca run all their transfer strategies past you

Or did you just read it in an Albanian publication again.
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To
Pughnichi said:
Nope. Get over it

Close to leaving doesn’t make him a bad player.
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Josep Dowling said:
After narrowly losing the title to Blackburn he sold 3 of his best players and replaced them with kids. Everyone couldn’t understand the decision yet they went on to win the double. That’s before you even consider his achievements at Aberdeen.

When has Pep ever introduced kids to replace serial wiwinnerss.
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There's no point comparing what Fergie did in 90's to what happens now. It's worlds apart, and every club seemingly can spend a fortune. However, when he took over Barca he famously flogged two of their best players of the past era, and promoted Busquets and got back previus Barca youth product, and Man Utd benchwarmer, Pique and made them integral to Barca's best ever side. It's not the exact same, but it's not completely different either.
 
Josep Dowling said:
Been watching the Sir Alex BBC documentary. Just from the first episode how can anyone think Pep is a better manager than him.

After narrowly losing the title to Blackburn he sold 3 of his best players and replaced them with kids. Everyone couldn’t understand the decision yet they went on to win the double. That’s before you even consider his achievements at Aberdeen.

When has Pep ever introduced kids to replace serial winners? He’s had 2 seasons of struggles at City. Both times he’s gone out and spent as much money as he possible. They’ve already spent €140m this month and want to buy 3 more players.
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The closest to this in recent years was Pep using 5-6 players who came through the academy to smash Ferguson twice in a CL final
 
kaiser1 said:
Now we have confirmed from a non Albanian source that Rummenigge wanted Xavi when Barcelona was about to push him out

Seems we are making progress Since
You went from

To
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I prefer my sources from tribalfootball and goal com.
 
Nice to see him spending his way out of trouble again - he's nothing if not consistent
 
SER19 said:
Nice to see him spending his way out of trouble again - he's nothing if not consistent
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Since October/November, most pundits I would listen to were saying "if there's one manager you'd trust to fix this/find a solution, it's Pep". And I'm pretty sure it will be portrayed as a stroke of genius or something, but he did not find a solution to the first true hardship he's encountered in his time there, and is just buying his way out of it.
 
Rooney in Paris said:
Since October/November, most pundits I would listen to were saying "if there's one manager you'd trust to fix this/find a solution, it's Pep". And I'm pretty sure it will be portrayed as a stroke of genius or something, but he did not find a solution to the first true hardship he's encountered in his time there, and is just buying his way out of it.
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Yep he clung on, scratching his skin off, until the chequebook could open again
 
Guardiola's managerial career is quite similair to Messi's as a player.

Successful Barcelona x 2
Unsuccessful Bayern vs Unsuccessful Barcelona periods
City vs PSG

Guardiola is one international tournament from nailing down the GOAT manager just like Messi did as a player.

I felt like both could have had more challenges in their career but just as Messi didnt play in a cold day at Stoke, neither did Guardiola ever want to manage Ipswich Town.

Either way, i feel like we cant blame Messi for being loyal to Barcelona & la liga vs testing himself out in different leagues because ultimately it was his choice and the career that he chose to take.

Likewise Guardiola should have maybe tested himself out more but didnt and took an easier path out which we cant point our fingers at.

The easier path was given due to their success they gained in the first place.

However, Guardiola ruined football as an entertainment which shows you exactly why he is the GOAT - his managerial impact will be felt for decades or centuries turning football in to a game of slow chess.
 
If he beats Liverpool to the title this season, after all that has transpired, I will vote for him.
 
At what point does his ludicrus spending become unsustainable? they had already reported a world record amount of wages paid out in their end of years and have now added a load more to the bill with these signings and Haaland's huge pay rise.
 
RedRocket9908 said:
At what point does his ludicrus spending become unsustainable? they had already reported a world record amount of wages paid out in their end of years and have now added a load more to the bill with these signings and Haaland's huge pay rise.
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Well, United are still alive and kicking so probably sustainable for a while yet
 
SER19 said:
Nice to see him spending his way out of trouble again - he's nothing if not consistent
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Well it is a long time since he has signed his way out of anything, hence the high average age of the squad that need rectifying, and a group of players that has been pretty consistent for 8 years now if you look at the core of the team going a bit bland. Also doubt a 20 year old with about 20 games for Lens and a 19 year old from Brazil is going to change our season that much. But I am sure when (if) they turn good about 2 years from now people will pretend they were that good out of the box and not developed at all. Rival fans are nothing if not consistent.

How many players do you want Amorim to sign to make you go back to where you want to be? How many signings short where Mourinho and Ten Hag before you could see the fruits of what they were trying to do? Funny thing about the chequebook-manager term is it only applies if you achieve relative success. Complete and utter failures doesn't register
 
FeedTheGoat said:
Well, United are still alive and kicking so probably sustainable for a while yet
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FeedTheGoat said:
Well it is a long time since he has signed his way out of anything, hence the high average age of the squad that need rectifying, and a group of players that has been pretty consistent for 8 years now if you look at the core of the team going a bit bland. Also doubt a 20 year old with about 20 games for Lens and a 19 year old from Brazil is going to change our season that much. But I am sure when (if) they turn good about 2 years from now people will pretend they were that good out of the box and not developed at all. Rival fans are nothing if not consistent.

How many players do you want Amorim to sign to make you go back to where you want to be? How many signings short where Mourinho and Ten Hag before you could see the fruits of what they were trying to do? Funny thing about the chequebook-manager term is it only applies if you achieve relative success. Complete and utter failures doesn't register
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Why do you even post on here?
 
Rooney in Paris said:
Why do you even post on here?
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Am I wrong?

Never seen the Caf, despite being a United forum, as a safe haven for delusion. At least not the "football" sub-forum. Surely I can point out inconsistency as I see fit, as others are free to do with me and my opinions
 
Shaw's Shank Redemption said:
Guardiola's managerial career is quite similair to Messi's as a player.

Successful Barcelona x 2
Unsuccessful Bayern vs Unsuccessful Barcelona periods
City vs PSG

Guardiola is one international tournament from nailing down the GOAT manager just like Messi did as a player.

I felt like both could have had more challenges in their career but just as Messi didnt play in a cold day at Stoke, neither did Guardiola ever want to manage Ipswich Town.

Either way, i feel like we cant blame Messi for being loyal to Barcelona & la liga vs testing himself out in different leagues because ultimately it was his choice and the career that he chose to take.

Likewise Guardiola should have maybe tested himself out more but didnt and took an easier path out which we cant point our fingers at.

The easier path was given due to their success they gained in the first place.

However, Guardiola ruined football as an entertainment which shows you exactly why he is the GOAT - his managerial impact will be felt for decades or centuries turning football in to a game of slow chess.
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I doubt that pep would do well managing ipswich,but what is with this barmy idea of messi not doing it because of the cold/rainy weather,and against stoke aswell....plenty of players come from warmer climates and adapt to playing over here,and if they dont its because of a lack of quality,not because it is colder here.Messi has performed well against many teams that are much better than stoke.
 
FeedTheGoat said:
Am I wrong?
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Your first post was a snarky, useless one.
The second one was a false equivalence. If you don't believe Pep is a cheque book manager, and that he wouldn't have achieved what he's achieved at City without the backing of the most expensive project in football history, founded on cheating, then good for you - but yeah, you're wrong.
 
FeedTheGoat said:
Well it is a long time since he has signed his way out of anything, hence the high average age of the squad that need rectifying, and a group of players that has been pretty consistent for 8 years now if you look at the core of the team going a bit bland. Also doubt a 20 year old with about 20 games for Lens and a 19 year old from Brazil is going to change our season that much. But I am sure when (if) they turn good about 2 years from now people will pretend they were that good out of the box and not developed at all. Rival fans are nothing if not consistent.

How many players do you want Amorim to sign to make you go back to where you want to be? How many signings short where Mourinho and Ten Hag before you could see the fruits of what they were trying to do? Funny thing about the chequebook-manager term is it only applies if you achieve relative success. Complete and utter failures doesn't register
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Highest spending manager in history of football even though he has always joined well stocked squads that never needed anything close to the rebuild of United :lol: ya it's been an age since he spent his way to anything. 1.5 billion at city, 2.1 bn in his career. Just stop :lol:
 
Rooney in Paris said:
Your first post was a snarky, useless one.
The second one was a false equivalence. If you don't believe Pep is a cheque book manager, and that he wouldn't have achieved what he's achieved at City without the backing of the most expensive project in football history, founded on cheating, then good for you - but yeah, you're wrong.
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I'd say calling the spending ludicrous and unsustainable when you look at the numbers and turnover over the last few years is pretty useless as well. It is quite obviously nowhere near approaching unsustainable, when you also factor in the success on the pitch. I am sorry but United is an example of something that seem way less sustainable with their constant shifting of deadwood, sacking of managers and then rebuilds that doesn't quite achieve where they need to be. But United are one of the biggest clubs on the planet so they keep afloat anyway. But it is still absurd when you see a situation like that and then ask how it is sustainable for probably the 2nd most succesful club of the last decade to sign two young kids for what pretty much has become the going rate these days. But I give you that my tone sometimes can be snarky.


I am not saying Pep hasn't achieved what he has achieved because of what has been done in the market. I am saying that it is weird that there is threads on here with multiple posters arguing about how many players the new United manager needs to win games against mid-table teams after taking over from another manager that signed basically a whole new squad, and then there is posts in this thread going "Pep signing his way out of trouble again" when if you look at the squad and our work in the market in the last 3 years what do you expect him to do? Play half of them until they retire and then only promote from within? (Which I personally think he should do more of) It is also a weird couple of transfer to bring out that narrative. It just comes across weird
 
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SER19 said:
Highest spending manager in history of football even though he has always joined well stocked squads that never needed anything close to the rebuild of United :lol: ya it's been an age since he spent his way to anything. 1.5 billion at city, 2.1 bn in his career. Just stop :lol:
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I never said he has not spent a lot, I am saying the squad currently is at the point where it needs to be invested in again. As any club or manager would come to the conclusion of.

He has spent loads, but how much has other clubs spent in that timeframe? He is approaching 9 years as City manager this summer. How does his total spend compare to the 3 permanent United managers that has already tried to rebuild United in Peps time at City, and how high do you think Amorim spend will have to be?
 
SER19 said:
Highest spending manager in history of football even though he has always joined well stocked squads that never needed anything close to the rebuild of United :lol: ya it's been an age since he spent his way to anything. 1.5 billion at city, 2.1 bn in his career. Just stop :lol:
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Again, he is that exactly because he's been at a big club in the PL for such a long time. He would have been the highest spending manager if he'd have been United or Chelsea's manager and probably even the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham's manager during this time. It's a product of him not being sacked rather than anything else.
 
He should be in the discussion, and i believe him leaving Barcelona is an indication that he understood what he had to do. But the choice he made when deciding the place to build a legacy for himself was the epitome of "shooting myself in the foot". As a sidenote, though, as we're fully entering the age of mega clubs, future generations may perceive him more favourably.

In the niche category of great managers who affected change in the game, his place is already secured. And with the way football has been globalized/commercialized, he can argue that this is "his era". Not many can make such a claim. It's a distinguished private club in which he has golden membership.

Anyway, he's one of the greatest managers of all time. Opinions on who's the ultimate number one will always differ.
 
CoopersDream said:
Again, he is that exactly because he's been at a big club in the PL for such a long time. He would have been the highest spending manager if he'd have been United or Chelsea's manager and probably even the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham's manager as well during this time. It's a product of him not being sacked rather than anything else.
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Quick google shows that Ten Hag spent roughly over 1/3 of Peps total spend in roughly under 1/3 of the time
 
CoopersDream said:
Again, he is that exactly because he's been at a big club in the PL for such a long time. He would have been the highest spending manager if he'd have been United or Chelsea's manager and probably even the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham's manager during this time. It's a product of him not being sacked rather than anything else.
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He hasnt been at a big club, he has been at City
 
RedRocket9908 said:
He hasnt been at a big club, he has been at City
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In terms of money they are, which is the only thing that counts for this aspect.

Doesn't change the fact that the money comes from questionable sources and everyone working for or supporting the club is a morally bankrupt despicable human being.
 
FeedTheGoat said:
I never said he has not spent a lot, I am saying the squad currently is at the point where it needs to be invested in again. As any club or manager would come to the conclusion of.

He has spent loads, but how much has other clubs spent in that timeframe? He is approaching 9 years as City manager this summer. How does his total spend compare to the 3 permanent United managers that has already tried to rebuild United in Peps time at City, and how high do you think Amorim spend will have to be?
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Weird conclusion as hes spent 290m in the last 18 months, not including this january where hes probalby going to eclipse 150m or thereabouts. He spent 160m if you go back a summer more. To say its at a point where it needs to be invested in again after almost 300m in the previous 18 months isnt a strong argument.

What makes his huge spending remarkable to me is that he has always been at clubs where the core of his success was in place. Barcelona already had xavi iniesta busquets and messi among some others, all of his early success at city was the result of the core who were already there too. He has never had to rebuild a team from day 1, and there is an enromous difference between inheriting a strong squad and inheriting a mess, so if you're going to try compare clubs you'd have to find a more like for like situation im afraid. For example if a manager came into the current madrid set up with their wealth of talent, and splurged like crazy.

Bottom line is they invested massively just 18 months ago, (and that was after enormous invest the previous 2 summers of players still very much integral to his team), and he wasn't able to sustain the success despite this, so he's spraying money again in the rare case of mid season. Which will no doubt be followed up in summer.

In black and white terms since 2022 he's signed Haaland, Ortega, Akanji, Gvrdiol, Kovacic, Doku, Nunes, Savinho and several others at a cost of almost half a billion! then by late 2024 when they are performing abysmally, youre saying its time to reinvest :lol: just imagine how much the majority of managers in england's heads would spin hearing that.
 
FeedTheGoat said:
I never said he has not spent a lot, I am saying the squad currently is at the point where it needs to be invested in again. As any club or manager would come to the conclusion of.

He has spent loads, but how much has other clubs spent in that timeframe? He is approaching 9 years as City manager this summer. How does his total spend compare to the 3 permanent United managers that has already tried to rebuild United in Peps time at City, and how high do you think Amorim spend will have to be?
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FeedTheGoat said:
Quick google shows that Ten Hag spent roughly over 1/3 of Peps total spend in roughly under 1/3 of the time
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This is such disingenuous posting.
 
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