JOSE MOURINHO AND PEP GUARDIOLA SOURCE

On the eve of another clash between the two giant clubs of Manchester, let’s take a look at the rivalry, the comparison and of course the history between their iconic coaches.

PREAMBLE

MOURINHO, GUARDIOLA AND ENRIQUE IN THE GOOD 'OL DAYS SOURCE

As silly as it sounds, history has it that Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola were once friends and ally. Then, Guardiola had just worked his way up the team – from being a ball boy to being the captain of the squad. Mourinho on the other hand had just landed a job as the translator and part time coach for Bobby Robson, the then Barca coach. In year 2000, Mourinho left Barcelona to manage various clubs in Portugal while Guardiola went on to play for various clubs in Europe and Asia before retiring in 2006 to coach Barcelona team B.

The feud between the pair would begin few years later when Frank Rijkaard was sacked due to bad runs at the club. Mourinho had made a name for himself and was widely thought to be the man for the job. However, to everyone’s surprise, Barcelona announced Pep Guardiola as the successor to Frank Rijkaard. This, I believe Mourinho has yet to forgive and forget.

That same year, Mourinho was named the new coach of Inter Milan following the departure of R. Mancini. The feud became obvious in the year 2010, when Mourinho’s team was drawn against Guardiola’s team in the semi-final stage of UEFA Champions League. Winning 3-2 on aggregate, Mourinho celebrated excessively throwing obvious jab and taunting Guardiola and Barcelona fan at Nou Camp after final whistle.

After winning champions at the detriment of Barca, Mourinho joined the Real Madrid, the arch rival of Barcelona. The next two seasons would be a very long and tiring one for both coaches. There seems no end to their feuds with both coaches often brawl it out intensely both on and off the field.

With both coaches now plying their trade in English premier league, the rivalry has once again been revived.

Style of Play

Mourinho style of play requires a strong and dogged players. players who would never get of position and would always run back to defend regardless of his position as an attacker or offensive midfielder. Mourinho prefers to use to 2 defensive midfielders and one lone offensive player. Upfront, he prefers one target man and one winger on both side of the field. As evident in the pairing of C. Ronaldo (up left), K. Benzema (at the middle) and A. Di maria (up right) in Madrid and Martial (up left), Lukaku (at the middle) and Rashford (up right). Generally, Mourinho prefers the dogged style of play over entertaining football. He is the type that would sacrifice everything for a win. Aside from non-entertaining football, Mourinho quick actions when losing a game is arguably second to none. He pays attention to details and makes effective substitute to turn the tide when losing a game.

Guardiola on the the other hand is a sucker for beautiful football. He prefers a whole team of ballers. Players who ability lies in accurate and disciplined pressing style of football. Guardiola team usually lacks defensive midfielder, instead he reinforces his central midfield with three player who can effectively move ball forward, score goals and distribute to the strikers when due. Upfront, Guardiola prefers two strikers, with one dropping back a bit as a supporting striker. With his style of football, his teams are always good at scoring many goals.

Coach-player relationship

It is a widely known fact that Mourinho tends to cause a bit of rift with his players. While at Real Madrid, he was constantly at loggerhead with the likes of C. Ronaldo, and S. Ramos. After leaving Chelsea for the second time, it was obvious he had a bad blood with not only the players but the staffs also. D. Luiz and Hazard once said they would have left Chelsea if Mourinho had stayed on. Now at Manchester United, Players such as P. Pogba, Martial, and Sanchez have at the moment of feud with the coach. Not to paint Mourinho a villain, many players has sang his praises and hold him in high regards (J. Terry, Lampard and Willian to mention jiust a few).

In my opinion, Guardiola seems the better man in this regard. Although not a saint and has had players who were not his fan in the slightest sense. Ronaldinho, Ibrahmovic, Samuel Eto'o to mention a few. However, many more of his players have song of praise to sing about the coach. Messi, Pique, Xavi and many others.

On and off pitch attitude

While Mourinho is undoubtedly one of the greatest coaches of recent times, he has on countless occasion offended many with his attitude. In 2005, Mourinho labelled Arsene Wenger “a voyeur” which he later apologized for. In 2014, he went on to labelled same Wenger “a specialist in failure”. After a 2011 match between Barca and Real Madrid, Mourinho claimed he doesn’t know who Tito “pito” Vilanova was (pito however means penis in Spanish). Just recently, Mourinho was seen taunting the Juventus fans after his side came from behind to win the match.

Both on and off the field, Mourinho attitude has always been questionable. Little wonder why he was dubbed “the most hated man in football”.

Guadiola attitude that might not be as pronounced as Mou’s, however he is no saint. He has been tagged a workaholic and obsessed tactician whose tendency to overwork and overwhelm is players is uncanny. This was evident when many players of Bayern Munich breath a sigh of relief when Ancelotti came on as there coach. A coach which many thinks his approach is more relaxed and less demanding.

Records

HEAD-TO-HEAD COMPARISON

Head-to-head, Mourinho is far behind Guardiola. The pair has met 21 times, with Guardiola winning 10, losing 6 and drawing 5. Mourinho’s side has scored a total of 28 goals as aganst 39 goals of Guadiola’s side. The two giant coach has only met in three finals, with both coaches sharing 2 wins between them and drawing one.

TROPHY COMPARISON

Trophy wise, Guardiola is currently leading the race with 26 trophies as against 24 trophies won by Mourinho. Personally, both team as won a lot of individual trophies. According to Wikipedia, Guardiola is 3 accolade shy of 30 individual trophies won by Mourinho.

WHO IS THE BETTER COACH?

Both coaches are undoubtedly among the greatest coach to ever grace this planet. But personally, Guardiola is a tad bit better than Jose Mourinho. His style of play, his winning ratio, his accrued trophy all speak volume of his ability and as shown above, the record are a little better than Mourinho’s.

In your opinion, who is the better coach? Let us know in the comment section below.

THANKS FOR READING.