Martin Samuel - Q&A over Pep

It's a long read, but I know some prefer it posting rather than the article link. If not, here's the link:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3398678/Man-City-make-impression-Champions-League-Double-retain-title-s-fair-list-Pep-Guardiola.html

If it is money rather than football that interests Pep Guardiola, he will definitely go to Manchester City. I don't blame him as loyalty means nothing to managers in football, look how easily they can be sacked even when they are doing well. Manuel Pellegrini is potentially going to make way for Guardiola having got City into a position where they could possibly win four major competitions this season. It is also sickening that some City fans want Guardiola when their manager is doing so well. You need to show some respect and loyalty to Pellegrini, you bunch of clowns. Don't forget you were Stockport County supporters a few seasons ago until the oil money rolled in from your rich Arabs. Bill, Andorra.

So on Monday I wrote that Pep Guardiola was coming to Manchester City – it's when, not if, I'm told – in a column that advanced my belief he will very quickly correct the weaknesses we see in the team now. City should be winning this league, I'm convinced of that, and I think the work ethic of a Guardiola team would be the difference. I can see them dominating, albeit briefly as he doesn't do long stints, when he comes here. All of that can be revisited here. This is where you get your say. As for Bill, in Andorra, I think he is being incredibly harsh on Manchester City and their fans in his post. Harsh, and also wrong. Why is City's project not about football? They have developed a fine academy, created a successful women's club, put in superb infrastructure and built a good team that has won two titles. Why is City only about money and what happens at Manchester United, or Chelsea, is not? Yes, it will be extraordinarily tough on Pellegrini if wins a quadruple, has the greatest season in the history of English football and is replaced by Guardiola. Do you fancy it happening, though? At the moment City are third in the league, hardly looking like potential champions of Europe and trail Everton 2-1 in the Capital One Cup semi-final. If I was a Manchester City fan I would view Guardiola as an upgrade, too, and I certainly wouldn't be advocating hanging around until the end of the season to see if it all worked out under Pellegrini, if that meant delaying and losing him to Old Trafford. Those same City fans were very supportive of Roberto Mancini, even after losing the FA Cup final to Wigan, but they're not stupid. They can see that this team, with its personnel, should be doing better. They're ambitious. They're not clowns. Now, this dear soul? He certainly pulled it off as a clown.

How is Guardiola even rated? He took over an already strong Barcelona team, did the same again with Bayern Munich and goes on to Manchester United or Manchester City, the latter full of players of value. It would have been interesting to see his true worth at somewhere like Everton or Tottenham, teams on the brink of European football, or even the likes of Villarreal or Fiorentina. Joseph Felts, London.

Why? Mauricio Pochettino is doing a good job at Tottenham and while, personally, I think Roberto Martinez is underachieving with his squad at Everton, he is still a draw and a win away from the club's first trophy in 21 years. Villarreal are currently fourth in La Liga, a point behind Real Madrid, and on course to qualify for the Champions League – the fifth placed team, Celta Vigo, are eight points back – so Marcelino, their manager, is also more than punching his weight. As for Fiorentina, they are three points behind Serie A leaders Napoli, so why should Paulo Sousa need replacing? Guardiola is a better fit at Manchester City where, it might be argued, the team is not the sum of its parts.

Guardiola cannot win the Champions League without Lionel Messi. Arlen Correa, Brasilia.

Yes, but you'll notice I did not mention the Champions League in the column. I was talking about a domestic era of domination. Actually I agree with you. As Barcelona proved against Bayern Munich last season, his philosophy will get so far, but the ultimate prize requires that unique group of players, too.

I just can't see how Guardiola would want to go to Manchester City. They have the squad and the facilities, so where is the challenge for him? Why wouldn't he want the Arsenal job, or even Manchester United? Both have more tradition and history yet are still a bigger challenge than City. Jimmy10, Manchester.

The challenge is in taking his philosophy into a different club and a different league. I think it would also appeal being among friends at Manchester City, where ex-Barcelona men Txiki Begiristain and Ferran Soriano are the director of football and chief executive officer. He wouldn't have that same kinship with the people in charge at Manchester United. Equally, Arsenal have a manager who has shown no sign of wanting to leave. He could be waiting another five years for Arsene Wenger to step down. There is plenty to achieve at City. The club is yet to make a significant impression on the Champions League, do the Double, or retain the title. That's a fair 'to-do' list, I'd say.

Who has he managed? Barcelona and Bayern Munich, and now he is the best thing since sliced bread. To be a real manager, you need a real pedigree. Brian Clough had to go through the s*** to get the glory. He wasn't given £30billion to win the Premier League and Champions League. I could do that at a fraction of what Guardiola wants. City clearly never learnt from the Raheem Sterling carry on. HUFC, Hartlepool.

What, when they said they wanted the last remaining jewel at Liverpool, Liverpool said they weren't selling and then Sterling ended up at…Manchester City. Yes, that must have been a complete embarrassment for them.

Sorry folks, it will be worse – much, much worse. Messi will be coming too. Philtheblue, Manchester.

Not sure he will, Phil. Those flirtations with a career in England tend to end up in new contracts to stay where he is. Why would he want to leave Barcelona?

I'm surprised Samuel hasn't suggested to Guardiola that he should buy Harry Kane – something he did when writing about Manchester United the other day. Eric the Cat, London.

Yes, they'd never heard of him at United until I wrote that, apparently. Anyway, I'd say Sergio Aguero is more Guardiola's speed than Kane.

The last thing the Premier League needs is another overrated, overpaid foreign coach who thinks hogging the ball as long as possible is entertaining. HAL, Coventry.

High times at the Ricoh Arena this season, obviously. You must be that bloke in the crowd who keeps telling Joe Cole to lump it.

I don't think Guardiola will do that well as his style of play won't be suited to the Premier League. Guardiola is all about possession, which is fine until he plays teams who stick everyone behind the ball. Considering he took over a treble-winning side and has signed the best players from his rivals, Guardiola has been a bit of a failure at Bayern Munich. His complete lack of tactics was viciously exposed by Real Madrid in the Champions League, playing a high line against Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo was naive, arrogant and clueless. Malinga, Pembrokeshire.

Yes, but again, you have to look for a Champions League tie against one of the greatest teams in Europe to pick fault. It will be hard for Guardiola to overcome Barcelona with Manchester City's current squad, or even with improvements, if the best players in the world continue gravitating towards La Liga. Domestic dominance is a different matter. I don't think he will be fazed by men behind the ball. I would imagine more than a few tried that against Barcelona back in the day. Bayern Munich, too. By the way, folks, do you sense a pattern emerging in these posts, a recurrence. There's a word for that, you know.

Intense, physical workrate to win the ball back in Spain where the pace is far slower, or even Germany where Bayern Munich are so strong, is one thing, but how will that fare in the Premier League – particularly if only working here for three years? Before Guardiola's Barcelona started dominating in 2009, English sides had a unique ability to turn the intensity of a game up and beat most teams. That work rate is still there and most of the teams, throughout the league, can still spend a lot more money on players than he'll be used to. Guardiola will play a hard working team pretty much every week. Manchester City will need an overhaul through midfield and defence if he is to be successful. This is his biggest challenge by far, even with City's resources. Lewis, Manchester.

All valid points, Lewis, but I don't think you are giving Guardiola enough credit for affecting that change against English clubs. If you look at Barcelona's record in the Champions League there are distinct phases. Meetings in the old European Cup were rare, because Barcelona were not consistent winners of the Spanish league. They beat Wolverhampton Wanderers, comfortably, in season 1959-60 and lost to Leeds in 1974-75. We then fast forward to the days of Champions League group stages and, at first, Barcelona do fine. Between 1994-95 and 2002-03, they played two sets of group matches against Manchester United and Newcastle, and one each against Arsenal, Leeds and Liverpool. Only Newcastle in 1997 beat them, and Barcelona's record reads W7 D6 L1. Then comes the period you are talking about, immediately prior to Guardiola's arrival. Barcelona are knocked out by Chelsea in 2005-06, lose and draw against them in the group stage the following season before being eliminated by Liverpool on away goals and losing again to Manchester United in 2007-08. Guardiola stops that rot. Since his arrival at the club in summer 2008, Barcelona have played seven knockout ties against English clubs and lost out only to Chelsea in 2011-12, in what might be termed exceptional circumstances. They have got lucky (away at Chelsea in 2008-09) and lost individual games (2-1 at Arsenal in 2010-11, before winning the return leg 3-1), but Guardiola's blueprint, which remains, has proved too much for the elite of the English game. I know we have hard-running, well-funded teams throughout the league here. But if Manchester City start putting it in, too, that additional quality will show. Leicester would not be able to match Manchester City if Manchester City worked as hard as Leicester. And under Guardiola, I'm sure they will.

It will be interesting to see which current Manchester City players will fit Guardiola's style of play. Aguero, Sterling, Fabian Delph, Jesus Navas and Fernandinho can all play a high pressing game, and probably Kevin De Bruyne, too. David Silva would surely adapt, although he's never been the quickest. I can see Guardiola getting rid of Yaya Toure, and recent comments from Toure's agent saying Guardiola is overrated suggests he probably knows that. He has sold him once already after all. MG501, London.

Delph can press, but is his football good enough? And why would Guardiola want Navas, who scores and creates so infrequently? I agree with you on Toure, though. He sold a younger version, so why would he indulge the current one?

We've already seen this season that possession football does not guarantee wins. Most teams in the league, especially the smaller ones, play on the counter-attack and it works a treat. Plus, the teams Guardiola has managed so far had the players to play his way. I don't think anyone, except maybe Arsenal, have the players for tiki-taka football. I think he'll struggle hugely in the Premier League especially if he doesn't change his style of play. ItTakes2meNu, Leicester.

Yes, but Guardiola's teams play counter-attack, too. As I explained in the column: quick ball recovery in the opponent's half. That's a counter-attack. So Guardiola teams are very good at what Leicester do. And they're very good at what Arsenal do, as well. So that makes them a threat. I don't think he'll struggle.

Martin Samuel talks about the obvious errors that Pellegrini is yet to address, but hasn't mentioned one. Clubs are constantly in transition because they buy players and staple them onto new management. Some win titles down to the money, but then these journalists should look and see Arsenal and Leicester up there, still. Goon, London.

I don't know what piece you read, but the errors I feel Pellegrini has made were spelled out very clearly. Equally, you cannot cite Arsenal's contention at the midway stage – when they haven't won the league since 2004 – and the incredible anomaly of Leicester's early success as proof that these models are the only ones of value. It would be great if Arsenal won the league, even greater were it to be Leicester, but the fact we would see either outcome as a refreshing change suggests it is not a consistently successful method.

I look forward to seeing the power moving totally from Manchester United to Manchester City. United are lost, with no answer to the problem created by the loss of Sir Alex Ferguson. I am, though, amazed that Mr Samuel has not flown to the United States and had interviews with the Glazer family and the man who runs United from London, Ed Woodward. The fans deserve better from those people. As for Van Gaal, he will not last this week. Johnny come lately, Llangollen.

It's not as easy as that, Johnny. You don't just pop over to Florida, bang on a door and out come the Glazers for interrogation. These guys don't speak. Roman Abramovich, Sheik Mansour, Stan Kroenke, Mike Ashley, Joe Lewis, Daniel Levy, Randy Lerner, the Glazers – never have the owners of football clubs wanted more control, without possessing the gumption to get in front of a microphone and take responsibility. Ed Woodward is an approachable man who holds press briefings, as does Van Gaal, but you never hear the voice of the real power at Manchester United. And it's not for want of trying. Everyone is asking, every season. A few years back, a leading figure in sports PR, charged with widening the appeal of American Football in Britain was offering an all-expenses trip to the Superbowl. People think this is how journalists live their lives, but I promise you I can count on the fingers of two fingers opportunities I have had like that in 30 years. (The one I did take, when Nike took me to Rio De Janeiro for the launch of their first Brazil kit, turned into a disaster because as we touched down, the news broke back home that Emerson had gone missing from Middlesbrough. So I spent three days looking for him. Believe me, nobody in Brazil has ever heard of the Emerson that was at Middlesbrough. But I digress.) Anyway, I told the PR guy that I would be delighted to cover a Superbowl, but it invariably clashed with a big event at home. 'What would it take for you to come?' he asked. 'Get me in a room with the Glazers,' I said. Suffice to say, I have still not been to the Superbowl.

Guardiola will guarantee free-flowing football that is great to watch, while at least maintaining or bettering City's recent domestic success. Can he bridge the gap with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich? That is where he will ultimately be judged. The Red Arrow, Kiribati.

Yes and no. City need to make a greater impact in Europe, true. But they also need to sustain success domestically by, for instance, retaining the title. I think if Guardiola achieves consistent domestic success and puts City in that last four mix in Europe he will be regarded as having taken the club on. Relative to what he has spent, obviously. If he does succeed in prising Messi out of Barcelona, for example – and I don't think he will – then the bar will rightly be raised.

Even the mighty Jurgen Klopp is having to learn how to play in England. Guardiola will also have to learn the hard way. It took Ferguson quite a while, too. Habib, London.

Yes, but Ferguson, like Klopp, came to a club that had not won the league in two decades. It is different for Guardiola, with City's resources and recent history.

Sorry, but Guardiola hasn't done anything special at Bayern Munich. They win a league in which they buy their rivals' best player each summer. He has got nowhere near the Champions League with a squad that won it the year before he arrived. Steviejay99, Colchester.

I agree that the Bundesliga is not much of a stretch for Munich right now, and that Guardiola has suffered some substantial reverses in the Champions League. Having said this, the treble is a hard act to follow. Maybe had he known that is what he would be doing he would not have gone.

Absolute codswallop. This is the Premier League, Martin, and it is a completely different animal from the joke contests in Spain and Germany. Guardiola will get a very rude awakening if he rocks up here and has to deal with a congested winter fixture list, absolutely zero scheduling support for clubs taking part in European games and combative and competitive smaller clubs. It is the hardest league to win in Europe. His Barcelona and Bayern Munich squads would have won their trophies with a dummy sitting in the dug-out. JMOWT, Belfast.

Impossible to prove, but I'm pretty sure they would have walked the Premier League, too, considering what they have consistently done to our best clubs in Europe.

I can see it already. Guardiola goes to Manchester City, wins the double and fans say he needs to prove himself before he can be considered a top coach – despite winning a third of the trophies he has competed for since entering management. Idiots. Anders, Stockholm.

I know. I find it bizarre this idea that it's all well and good winning the Champions League with Barcelona, but why doesn't he try to get Stoke into the top six instead? If you can conquer Europe with one of its greatest clubs – which also happens to be your club, by the way – why would you choose to go to Stoke? It's like asking the editor of the New York Times why he doesn't chance his arm trying to raise circulation at the Cleckheaton Chronicle and Evening Courier. Ah yes, that David Bowie. It's all well and good sodding off to Berlin with musical geniuses like Robert Fripp and Brian Eno, but why didn't he get Doris the pianist from the Dog and Duck and spend the winter touring the church halls? Because then you don't get this.

I don't agree that Guardiola's arrival means a prolonged period of dominance. For the first time in his career he will be going to a club where he is not guaranteed success. Let's face it, Luis Enrique has emulated Guardiola at Barcelona. Any manager worth his salt could be successful with that team. At Bayern if he doesn't win the Champions League this season his reign will ultimately be a failure. It's a one team division, other than the occasional challenge from Borussia Dortmund. He took over from Jupp Heynckes who had just done the treble, and the general consensus was that he was coming to start a prolonged period of European success. Didn't happen and he's bailed after three years. Who is to say he will come to Manchester City, win a few trophies and then want to move onto Italy or France? I think this next job will define his career. Ash1989, Farnborough.

Who said prolonged dominance? My point was that Guardiola doesn't do more than three years, so the saving grace is that whatever he achieves will be short-term. I agree that the jury is out over his time at Munich, considering the level the club was at when he arrived, but what he did at Barcelona was far greater than his detractors on here appreciate. If anybody could win the league with his Barcelona team, why didn't they? Guardiola took over in 2008; Barcelona had last won the league in 2005-06. He immediately did the treble, which no Spanish club had done before. So it is not true that, historically, anyone can win the league with Barcelona. They had won it twice in the nine seasons before Guardiola arrived. Terry Venables suffered the same level of ignorance about his achievements. How many times has his success in bringing the title to Nou Camp in 1985 been decried because 'anyone could do it there'. Fact: the last time Barcelona won the league before Venables was in 1974, the next time after him would be 1991. That's one title in 16 seasons. Just anyone doesn't win the league at Barcelona. The team that Guardiola produced, and its record, is special.

Roberto Mancini would have done a great job at City had he been allowed his head during his last season. QueSera, Manchester.

I think Mancini was a brilliant Manchester City manager because he was the first title winner of the modern era. The breakthrough season is always the hardest.

So winning the champions league at Bayern Munich, as Guardiola's predecessor did, is no way to measure success or did you forget about that? We who are involved in the game know about the five second rule of winning the ball back and understand the level of fitness required to have the energy to be effective once in possession, but the fact remains that Guardiola has not won the biggest trophy. Why would that be then? Brian Boru, Melbourne.

Because he doesn't have Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez or Cristiano Ronaldo, Angel di Maria and Gareth Bale. For someone involved in the game – who, despite this, hides behind the alias of a long-dead (and somewhat overrated) Irish king – I would have thought you would know that.

Win, lose or draw nobody in the world respects Manchester City. This will never change no matter what they achieve. They are a filthy oil club with a rich sugar daddy and having Guardiola at the helm will not change this. Trophies may be won but respect is earned and City will never have it. Highway23revisited, United Kingdom.

I'm not sure they would want it from a complete doofus like you, mate.

If he were going anywhere else other than Manchester City, the fans of that club would be shouting from the rooftops. As it is we're hearing 'we didn't want him' and 'he's not that good anyway'. City will be up there no matter who is in charge, but the fact it is Guardiola means they will attract better players and add structure to the team. The people now sneering are the same ones that said we wouldn't get Carlos Tevez, Aguero, Silva or Toure and that we'd never win a trophy. And didn't some chap once say not in my lifetime? MCFC OK, Manchester.

It's the way people are. I remember when Cristiano Ronaldo left Manchester United and some fans were saying he wouldn't be missed and Luis Antonio Valencia was the real clever money buy.

If Guardiola really wants to prove himself, he'll manage a struggling team like Blackpool. It's called the fear of the inevitable and unavoidable. That gut wrenching feeling that we all get when it dawns on us that one day, not far away, we'll be dead. Zip O'Lightning, United Kingdom.

I bet the party invitations are just piling up round your place, mate.

I don't know if his style will work in the Premier League. Manchester United keep the ball all day long and look how that's working out; or maybe they don't have the players? On paper they should have, though. Sprulesey, Bristol.

There is a big difference between simply keeping possession and doing something with it. Guardiola's team are aggressively proactive.

Too many times under Manuel Pellegrini Manchester City wait for something to happen rather than making things happen. I'm sure he's a very nice man. He has done a good job at City but not a great one with the resources at his disposal. This CITY is ours, Manchester.

I think winning the league in his first season, and becoming the only coach from outside Europe to do so, was a great achievement, but since then Manchester City have trod water. After Mancini, who was a very high maintenance employee, to have a low profile manager was no doubt very appealing to the executives there. For a club looking to widen its appeal globally, though, it is unhelpful. If City are successful it hardly matters who the manager is. If they are merely chugging along, then having a quiet man like Pellegrini in charge is not beneficial to a club trying to raise its profile.

Guardiola's looking forward to all that money. Cannot fail, can he? Wonder if he'd try Aston Villa or Newcastle? Gen. Harry Flashman, Kabul.

Again, why should he? Why doesn't Lewis Hamilton go off and drive for Force India; why doesn't Jamie Vardy go back to Fleetwood? If you are talented why wouldn't you want to work with other talented people?

Klopp will win every match with Liverpool. He hasn't. Van Gaal will win prize after prize with Manchester United. He hasn't. NLX 78, Rotterdam.

Did I make those predictions? Could you please show me where? Klopp has time to be a fine Liverpool manager, and Van Gaal may yet turn Manchester United around. I certainly thought, with United's resources, he had a chance of winning the league in his time there. Maybe that won't happen now. Hey ho. It's journalism, not clairvoyancy. If I want the view of someone who knows everything I usually ask a talking owl with glasses; or this next bloke.

Guardiola won't do anything special in England just like he never did anything special at Bayern Munich and never reached the Champions League final. Vodno91, Amsterdam.

Now I'm sure he is still their manager and they are still in it – but as I said, I'm no talking owl with glasses.

There are lots of comments on here asking if he could do it with a smaller club with limited funds and the answer is probably no. But nobody could. To get to the top now you need money and someone who can use it. You also need to be able to manage the big players on big money with big egos, and that's where the best managers come to the fore.You only need to look at other clubs who have spent heavily and are not playing well. The best managers handle both. Joshjake2, Manchester.

Certainly the idea that Guardiola can only be considered truly great if he wins the league with Queens Park Rangers is nonsense. He has earned the right to work at an elite level. Had he failed at Barcelona – and failure was an option – he would have been forced to take a step down. He didn't, so is where he is on merit.

Saying Guardiola needs to go and prove himself by turning Aston Villa or Sunderland into title winners is like asking Leonardo Da Vinci to recreate the Mona Lisa with a box of old Crayolas just to show how good he is. The original masterpiece tells you everything you need to know. Kett, Lancaster.

Exactly.

Compare the front three of Barcelona, Messi, Suarez and Neymar, with Manchester City's four: Silva, Aguero, De Bruyne and Sterling. One group defend from the front as a disciplined, efficient, high tempo unit and the other group doesn't really defend at any level. The only one who offers anything defensively is Navas who is at least prepared to track back. The additional problem with playing a front four is that it only leaves room for a midfield two. Both Toure and Fernandinho are great players but are essentially attacking midfielders. Put those six in front of anybody's back four and see how comfortable they look. David, Manchester.

I think that is a little harsh on City's forwards. I'd say the problem runs through the team, rather than just pockets of it.

At this moment Manchester City already have a good manager. Still in the Champions League, League Cup, FA Cup and in the running for the Premier League. They could come away with four trophies this season. I really don't know why City fans are getting all giddy about Pep. He's managed two clubs which my granny could run and get results. Red Reefer, Bury.

Yeah, but I've met your granny mate. She's known as a tactical genius in the Whitefield area.

Guardiola is so overhyped. He has only managed at Barcelona and Bayern Munich where the tea lady could win the title. F458, England.

Not if Red Reefer's granny was in charge of Real Madrid or Schalke 04, she couldn't.

Just to show how easy it is to win with Barcelona, Luis Enrique finished ninth in La Liga with Celta Vigo, was hired by Barcelona, and then won the Treble. Would Manchester City or Chelsea hire a manager who had just finished ninth in the Premier League? We all know they wouldn't. The Voice of Reason, England.

Yes, but I make Barcelona right. They want a coach to work with the philosophy of the club. How many Premier League teams have a philosophy? They flit from one fashionable name to the next. It will be interesting to see how Arsenal go about replacing Arsene Wenger long term, whether they pull out a marquee name or search for a replacement who is more in keeping with the style of the club, regardless of his recent achievements.

I reckon Guardiola will enjoy his time in English football and stay a little longer. You would hope the league will throw up more challengers next season and its competitive nature, the attacking football and the passion in the stands may infect him as it has done others. If he can get it right, Manchester City look to be on the cusp of something big and it will be fascinating to see how the others try to cope with that. Nick, Aylesbury.

I agree, Nick. I doubt if Wenger thought he would stay as long, or even Jose Mourinho.

Some people underestimate the Premier League, as Van Gaal has found. This is not the Bundesliga or La Liga. Guardiola will not achieve the success he has up to now, when five or six teams fancy their chances of being champions, when any of the top teams can be beaten by lesser opponents and the TV money is shared more equally. You're not going to get teams scoring 10 goals. Don't believe the hype.Spencer, Reading.

I don't think Van Gaal underestimated the Premier League. I think Manchester United's problems ran deeper than many anticipated.

This is the most competitive league in the world. Before the start of the season no-one would have predicted that Chelsea would be fighting relegation by the turn of the New Year. Guardiola hasn't done it on a cold Monday night at Stoke yet, has he? T.Evy, Rwanda.

Ah, the proverbial cold Monday in Stoke. I would have thought that one died a death, now that half the Stoke team comes from Barcelona and they seem to all right with the weather.

Pellegrini has been giving Manchester City good results but the owners want the top names to go with their branding and marketing. So all of the cliche 'top players' will be recruited and, short of being created in a test tube, no expense will be spared. How nice to have unlimited funds and no financial fair play. Claudio Ranieri and Leicester are exactly what football need right now: a club with little cash and loads of heart. I hope Leicester show the league what minnows can do when they have passion over big cash. Ranieri is the template of good managing and coaching, not cash coaching. Micksandy, Dubai.

A lecture on the evils of cash culture from a bloke based in Dubai. And they say satire is dead. Ranieri has variously been coach of Napoli, Fiorentia, Valencia, Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, Parma, Juventus, Inter Milan and, wait for it, Monaco. But I'm sure none of those clubs were ever about the money. He is only at Leicester because his career was on a downward trajectory after a disastrous spell with the Greek national team. Indeed, one might argue the Leicester job is also about the cash, and Ranieri preferred working for one of the richest men in Thailand in the richest league in the world, to taking over an equivalent team in impoverished Serie A. Of course, this takes nothing away from the quite magnificent job he is doing – last night's result at Tottenham was incredible – but let's not romanticise the circumstances. Also, I am not sure Pellegrini is getting such good results this season. The scorelines against Tottenham, Liverpool, Arsenal, West Ham, Stoke and Everton, for instance, were far from good.

If Guardiola doesn't join City, and I don't think it is anywhere near as certain as Samuel proclaims, then I wonder if he'll refer back to filler articles like this and admit he got it hopelessly wrong or whether he'll adopt his usual MO and either ignore it or use sophistry to argue he knew it all along? IWWT, London.

No, if Guardiola does not go to Manchester City, I will be very surprised because my understanding from sources I would trust is that the deal is done. Still, things can change and I certainly wouldn't be embarrassed about it, just as I do not need sophistry, or even that talking owl with glasses, in our monthly jousts. Which of your stunning lines of attack would I need to repel? The one where you had Uzbekistan from the Asian Confederation competing in the UEFA Champions League, misquoted the Wizard of Oz and got it confused with Alice In Wonderland (October 22, 2015); the one where you namedropped Voltaire and Sartre like the character Student Grant from the Viz comics (October 8, 2015), the one where you pompously derided English football as being all lager, kebabs, passion and magic sponges before Wenger arrived, when in fact England had just beaten Holland 4-1 at Wembley (August 6, 2015). And that's just the last six months. Sophistry? I could come intellectually armed with a roadkill hedgehog and next door's tortoise and still fancy my chances against you.

Guardiola will get a shock when the stadium isn't full but will improve Manchester City. Redabroad, Amsterdam.

I don't think selling tickets will be their problem.

Guardiola is too much of a coward to take on a challenge. It would be amazing if he followed Ferguson or Wenger, took on a club and built something. He only takes on clubs in a rich vein of form. Snowbomb, Norwich.

Barcelona were not in a rich vein of form when he took over – and he most certainly built something.

Diego Simeone is far more impressive. He's top of the league again and with a team on a quarter of the budget. CrazyLew, Cardiff.

I agree, Simeone's job at Atletico Madrid is hugely impressive. I feel he would improve City, too, but I'm told they don't like his football.

You are convinced Guardiola's going to Manchester City. And what if they do the Double? They won't get rid of their manager. Bailey1, Stirling.

Yes, they will, just as Bayern Munich did, post-treble.

Well that didn't take long, Martin, did it? Your former favourite Mourinho, who you wouldn't criticise despite his deplorable behaviour and fall from grace, is gone. So you have a new beau to sycophantically crawl after. Will Guardiola be given the same ridiculously biased treatment that you reserved for Mourinho, even when everyone else could see he was rotten? Let's just look beyond the fact that Guardiola has managed two teams that were littered with top talent. How about waiting to see how he adapts to the Premier League first before throwing yourself at his feet. I thought you might have learnt. EConan, London.

What can I say? I like talented people. The pity is I waste time talking to halfwits like your good self. Let's raise the standard.

Let me ask this. Who is the Celtic manager? Exactly. Who cares because they are winning a one-team league, same as in Germany. Star Lord, London.

Can I stop you there? Ronny Deila is the Celtic manager. Everyone knows Ronny Deila is the Celtic manager. We might not care that Ronny Deila is the Celtic manager; but we know. And now, sweet, sweet reason.

Yes, Barcelona were the best team but only because Guardiola made them so. Barcelona hadn't won anything in two years and then he transformed the club, took some brave decisions, got rid of Ronaldinho, Edmilson, Gianluca Zambrotta, Lilian Thuram, Deco and then a year later Samuel Eto'o and Thierry Henry too. Barcelona were made to struggle at times but Guardiola led them to glory again, promoted Sergio Busquets, bought back Gerard Piqué, and bought Dani Alves and Seydou Keita. He transformed them into possibly the best club team in history, and won the first six trophies possible. You can stop the delusion that Guardiola only did this because he had great teams. Anyway, how many top coaches struggle to even deliver for the big clubs? Guardiola's record is remarkable, no matter what. Avmogensen, Denmark.

Are you, by any chance, a talking owl with glasses?

Guardiola hasn't managed a team without at least five world class stars. At Barcelona, he had Messi, Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Carlos Puyol and Busquets. At Bayern, Robert Lewandowski, Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, Manuel Neuer, Thiago Silva, Philipp Lahm and Thomas Muller. Manchester City? Only Silva, Vincent Kompany and Aguero would count as world class. Hoi Wong, Hong Kong.

Actually, it was Guardiola who elevated Busquets. Nobody considered him world class in 2008. For the same reason, if Guardiola makes a success of Manchester City, his critics will immediately talk of this great squad he inherited when, as you point out, only a handful are currently seen that way. I'd say Aguero, Silva, Joe Hart and Kompany, but that Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Sterling, and maybe Aleksandar Kolarov short-term, have the potential to be taken to a next level. The rest may require an overhaul.

But are you so sure he will join Manchester City? It could be any of the top teams in the Premier League. Georgi Best, London.

No, I'm sure it is City. That is why I have stopped putting caveats in the sentences.

No winter break, no TV revenue monopoly, no B team from which to cherry pick match ready players – add an extra competition and the fact that well coached clubs like Crystal Palace, West Ham, Watford, Leicester and Tottenham will all have more financial muscle next season, and it will be very interesting to see what he can do in England. City are actually getting rid of a coach who has been doing very well. Zacc Xav, Medellin.

I don't think you can say that unless Pellegrini wins the league this season, considering the problems at Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool, and the strength of City's squad.

Be careful what you say. Klopp was going to be the big game changer at Anfield – but it just looks like the same old Liverpool. Guardiola will not find it easy – it is the manager who must adapt to the game, not the players who must adapt to the manager. The Premier League is like no other in the world, as Van Gaal can testify. Manzoni17, Monza.

Give Klopp a chance. He came in mid-season. I take your point about adapting to the unique demands of the league, but I don't think Guardiola is a fool. He has been preparing for this and knows the compromises that must be made.

Manchester United should go for Pellegrini – he might have a bigger point to prove than Guardiola. Evolcanic, Edinburgh.

Bigger than Mourinho's?

Guardiola is overrated. Real managers make a bottom half team champions. A Realist, Brazil.

So Bob Paisley wasn't a real manager; nor Ferguson, Mourinho, Wenger, Carlo Ancelotti – I mean, it's going to be quite a list here. So let's keep it short: Brian Clough, Kenny Dalglish and Sir Alf Ramsey aside, who in English football fits your ridiculously exacting criteria?

What I find most ironic about some of the views on here is that if he went to Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester United then he would be termed a world class coach. As it is Manchester City it is all about the money. People are slowly realising that he is going to City and nothing will stop it from happening. Guardiola is the final piece of the jigsaw for our club and I am so excited about him being our manager. Just think of the players we can attract. Pellegrini is a good manager but not a patch on Guardiola. Ctid74, Manchester.

Rather contradicted yourself here, though, haven't you? One moment it's not about the money, the next it's about the players you can buy with Guardiola at the helm.

Unfortunately, Martin, you are wrong. Wenger he is not. Guardiola has always taken over teams packed to the gunnels with talented players. Wenger, on the other hand, finds really good players and makes them world class. Wenger has never been afraid to bring in his academy talent. He produced the 'Invincibles' team and not even Ferguson could do that. When Guardiola can get a team to the Invincibles level then we might believe he is really good. Until then my rating would be 7/10. Popularis inspectori, Grantham.

So only an unbeaten season lifts a manager beyond 7/10? This means there have been two really good managers in close to a century and a half of English football. Wenger and Major William Sudell, manager of the Preston North End Invincibles of 1888-89. A pity about him later getting three years for embezzlement or I'm sure he'd have a higher profile. Well, this will certainly come as a shock to Sir Alex Ferguson. He was probably thinking he had done all right until now.

I would still like to see Guardiola take over a weaker team. Maybe he will decide he is the man to guide Leeds United back to the Premier League. Dan, Scotland.

Look mate, Moses couldn't guide Leeds back to the Premier League. Not with Massimo Cellino in charge.

Guardiola will inspire Manchester City for three years and, after that, will move on to another very rich club and leave someone else to pick up the pieces. Bayern Munich were in three Champions League finals from four before he took over and haven't been back since. I'm with Sam Allardyce – my granny could have taken a team with Messi, Xavi and Iniesta in their prime to the Champions League title. Otis Redding, Belfast.

A lot of talented grandmothers out there, it seems. Makes you wonder why they don't get more of the top jobs. They'd probably chip in with the laundry as well. Save a fortune on Omo.

Guardiola will probably be successful, but it will not come as easily as at his first two clubs. Barcelona and Bayern Munich already had a fertile foundation. Young talented players had been discovered and had big game experience. The teams were already accustomed to the possession game. Also, Barcelona and Bayern did not have 11 individuals bought from elsewhere; the players were brought up by the club and motivated to play for them. Dutchman, Haarlem.

Valid points there, although I think Guardiola's ethos will make loyalists of those that find favour with him. He has got the team to buy into his ideas at Bayern Munich readily enough.

Guardiola can't spend at Manchester City until he shifts a lot of players on high wages. City overpaid on a lot of the squad and will need to take a hit sell them on. Even Guardiola will struggle to rebuild that squad in two seasons. Blocksof, United Kingdom.

I think he has enough to work with from the start and can finesse it in time for next season. I don't think City need rebuilding like, say, Liverpool or even Manchester United after Ferguson.

Football journalism has nowadays become more a game of astrological wild guesses. Mourinho will take Chelsea to unimaginable heights, Van Gaal will transform Manchester United and Pellegrini is the right man for this and that. Come on, seriously? Guardiola has not even mentioned he will join City. Drvaruns, Melbourne.

You went for the rule of threes there, didn't you, but it didn't pan out. I haven't heard Pellegrini described as the right man for this, or even that. Klopp. That should have been your third example. Some sort of Messiah reference with regard to Klopp. Never mind, it's not as easy as everyone thinks, this journalism lark – certainly not the side of it that is, by nature, predictive. I don't really do predictions. You may notice then when the Mail writers say who they think will win the league, or get relegated, my name isn't there. The reason for this is that I don't want to be held to an opinion given on a whim one day in August when I am writing three columns a week through the year. I might want to change my mind and end up getting tied in knots. 'Well, I did think this, but now I think that, and maybe next week I will think…' Best leave alone and when you've got a firm call to make, say it then. So it isn't astrology when a columnist says Van Gaal, for instance, will be a success or failure at Manchester United. It's an opinion. And if a columnist is any good he'll have thought long and hard about it. I genuinely believe Guardiola will make a huge impact at Manchester City, maybe dominate the landscape short-term. Would I advise you to put the mortgage on it? No. It's nothing that can be taken to the bank. As for writing about Guardiola as the next Manchester City manager with such certainty, well that's a little different. We all get information from people we know in football, and I have been told – and so have colleagues, from other sources – that City is his next destination. Will Manchester City, or Guardiola, confirm it? Of course not, midway through the season, and I wouldn't expect them to. Sometimes we have to accept that a club wishes its business to remain private. I can't provide dates or salaries or terms and conditions, but I feel as confident as a journalist can ever be that Guardiola will manage City. Would I put the mortgage on it, again no – because he is 1/5 with most bookmakers and there is no value in that bet. So they think it is happening, too. And they're the only ones who stand to lose money if they are wrong. So I'd go with them, as well.

Martin, the press are obsessed with Guardiola, the fans are not. This is a story for the end of the season or when you actually know where he is going. Until then, let's talk about this season, please. Sam's Town, Manchester.

OK, I think this season will be Pellegrini's last as coach, because Guardiola will be the next manager of Manchester City. And if you are not interested in the future appointments or transfer activity at your club, I'd say you are the exception. All most fans ever want to know is 'any gossip' or 'who are we buying'?

Guardiola will need something at Manchester City, something the club does not have. Ever watched Bayern Munich playing? It is like they have 12 men. Why? Check out Manuel Neuer. He is a sweeper, too. He has far the best footballing skills I have ever seen in a goalkeeper. Do you think Bayern would ever sell Neuer or do you think Hart could play like him? Dream on. Penner, Germany.

But Neuer played that way before Guardiola came to Bayern. Meaning it is his game, not Guardiola's. Hart is an excellent goalkeeper. I am sure that position will be far from a priority for the new coach.

Steve McClaren won the Dutch League with FC Twente and could probably win the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich or La Liga with Messi in his team. Yet in England he is struggling to keep Newcastle up. Enough said. The press will tear Guardiola to pieces if he makes a false move. And he will make mistakes. You can afford them a two team division, but not in England. It is too competitive. My puppy could manage Bayern. CJ76, Midlands.

Yes, but what about your grandmother's puppy in a sort of Clough and Taylor partnership? Could work. Anyway, that's it for this week. RIP David Bowie. This is close to perfection. Until next time.

Fk me! Don't have time for that... would you please sum it up in a paragraph ?!

Of course PG...

You're a lazy twat.

That simple enough?

Yer barsteward!

quite a mixed bag in all that  ))

blomin owl keeps popping up..

a lot of grannies also. A lot of quotes which are very repetitive such as do it with a lesser team, Money etc hardly original. Loved the reply to doofus

I'll email Samuel and ask him to make sure all the posts are 'original' next time....

The title gave it away....only so much bitterness you can aim towards us, Pep and MP.

Shame it wasn't about TLMLF.....I'd make sure I got at least 50 articles in!!!

blueboy wrote:I'll email Samuel and ask him to make sure all the posts are 'original' next time....

The title gave it away....only so much bitterness you can aim towards us, Pep and MP.

Shame it wasn't about TLMLF.....I'd make sure I got at least 50 articles in!!!

Would he have called you a doofus?

Wow that was long He seems pretty dam certain that Pep is coming to us

If that is the case MP must know, so y doesn't he grow some balls and start making some
'engineer' like decisions & stand up to the 'egos' I mean he doesn't really have anything to lose
& he could embarrass the club by winning the quadruple

Blue when I was on about repetitive questions it was a dig at the "sheep" fans regurgitating the same old crap that has been dished up time & time again these past 7 years or so. Money, mercenaries etc. It wasn't a dig at Samuel.     DOOFUS love that word.

skyblueoz wrote:Blue when I was on about repetitive questions it was a dig at the "sheep" fans regurgitating the same old crap that has been dished up time & time again these past 7 years or so. Money, mercenaries etc. It wasn't a dig at Samuel.     DOOFUS love that word.

Exactly Oz.
Tbh i got bored reading that as it was the usual crap we've been hearing from jealous uneducated knob heads for the last 5 or so years.