Pep Guardiola is widely regarded as one of the greatest football managers in history.
His legacy in the Premier League places him just behind Sir Alex Ferguson, though his success extends beyond England, having achieved major triumphs in Spain with Barcelona and in Germany with Bayern Munich.
The Manchester City boss has won nearly every major trophy available with the clubs he has managed, working alongside world-class players and competing against some of the finest tacticians the sport has ever seen. ..Continue Reading
Over the years, Guardiola has gone up against legendary figures like Ferguson, Jurgen Klopp, Carlo Ancelotti, and Arsene Wenger. Yet, one manager in particular stood out as his toughest adversary.
Given the high-stakes encounters they shared, it’s hardly surprising who he named.
While Guardiola and Klopp first clashed in Germany when the Spaniard led Bayern Munich and the German managed Borussia Dortmund, it was their rivalry in England—between Manchester City and Liverpool—that solidified Klopp’s status as Guardiola’s greatest managerial opponent.
For years, City and Liverpool went head-to-head at the summit of the Premier League, and during Guardiola’s dominant spell, no team pushed them harder than Klopp’s Liverpool.
That’s why it comes as little surprise that Guardiola considers Klopp the most challenging manager he has ever faced.
During a lecture for the UEFA Pro course in Spain, Guardiola reflected on his encounters with Klopp and that formidable Liverpool side, acknowledging them as his toughest opponents.
“Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool have been the toughest I’ve ever faced in my life. There were days when I thought ‘I’ve got him’ and the next day he’d [Klopp] destroy me again. He was the toughest by far. Because of his way of playing, his transitions, because he was very direct, because he attacked with a lot of players. The inside midfielders are usually support players, but Klopp’s midfielders were about attacking space.
“So, he’d force the full-backs to close down a lot, then he’d open you up on the outside with his full-backs. They continually sprinted inside. Firmino would drop back. Salah and Mane’s runs behind him were unstoppable. It was very, very difficult to counteract.
“I give a lot of credit to what we’ve done these years to the incredible quality of the opponent we’ve had to face. Those three or four league titles we won against Klopp are the greatest success we’ve achieved. There hasn’t been a tougher opponent I’ve ever faced.”
Klopp’s Liverpool only managed to get their hands on the Premier League trophy once, but there’s no doubt that they pushed City to the brink on a number of occasions and they often seemed to have Guardiola’s number on the pitch.
