Pep Guardiola's statements at Man City sometimes contain exaggeration, sarcasm or combination of both, so his words can be understood in many different ways …
But when looking back at the worst season in his career, he stated: “I am very happy to have failed.” In the context of Pep who won 12 domestic championships in the previous 15 seasons, many “treirs” in different forms, 3 Champions League and a series of records, then “failure” here only reflect the standard that he himself set.
Going back a year ago, everyone will make sure that Man City will win the fifth Premier League championship in a row – something unprecedented in history. However, they actually closed the season in 3rd place. The Green Man ranked 22nd in the Champions League class, was eliminated by Al Hilal at the Club World Cup and lost to Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final. Man City undergo a series of 5 losses in the period to 9/12 matches. In one of the remaining three matches, they drew Feyenoord despite the 3-0 lead. Overall, the 2024/25 season is much worse than any real expectation.
Among all these things, Guardiola still extended the contract – despite the series of failures, the image of a great team collapsed, the close ally TXIKI BEGIRIRISTAY left the sports director's seat, and the shadow of the hearing related to 115 allegations from the Premier League. This is a testament to the incredible loyalty, or it may be stubborn.
Guardiola confirmed that he would rest when he left Man City, and with the familiar style of exaggeration, he said that rest could last 15 years, implying that he could return to training at the age of 70 years old. However, a person who does not need to prove what seems to be unfinished.
Part of the reason comes from the collapse last season. Now, Liverpool is both the number one candidate and the strongest spending team. Man City's ruling era may have been closed, or last season is only an accident. Guardiola – a great empire building – has a territory that needs to be regained.
Pep is currently the longest coach in the British professional football system, and has similarities with two symbols before him. Sir Alex Ferguson used to build three great MU generations. Arsene Wenger has two generations at Arsenal. Their successive generations are still good but not great, and often end the season in 3rd or 4th place.
Now, Guardiola is clearly building the third generation of Man City. The second generation disintegrated. Kevin De Bruyne was not proposed to extend the contract, Kyle Walker was sold to Burnley, Jack Greealish was pushed to the edge. Those were two captains and one contract of £ 100 million. Another former captain, Ilkay Gundogan, may no longer participate in the starting lineup. The revolutionary goalkeeper Ederson is in the final year of the contract and will have to compete with James Trafford.
Man City spent £ 300 million to “overhaul” the squad, with 10 rookies in 2025. Each number has a significant: it reflects the scale of the reconstruction, and President Khaldoon Al Mubarak admits that Man City has not been “drastic” in the previous summer transfer market, when underestimating the need to rejuvenate the old squad. But their budget must divide in many directions. While Liverpool spent 100 million pounds to buy Florian Wirtz, only one of the 10 rookies of Man City Omar Marmoush, priced at over £ 50 million.
Of the 4 winter contracts, only Marroush can squeeze into the main squad, and even that is not sure. Of the 6 summer rookies, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki are expected to bring both quality and reasonable value. However, they will still be compared to the peak of Gundogan and De Bruyne.
Another problem is that despite having bought a lot, Man City has no replacement for Walker. And although Guardiola is in the hands of a group of quality players, even too crowded compared to the will, the number of faces must be too small. He has many options, but last season does not always choose the right, sometimes using a strange squad. Currently, PEP has 6 potential central defenders, at least that candidate for the central midfielder or winger.
Only two players are sure: Erling Haaland – who is absent 40 days last season, still scored 34 goals even for a decline, and Rodri – the factor that if healthy can cover many shortcomings and drag Man City to the championship. Now, the Golden Ball has returned. Man City also needs to see Phil Foden returning to his form. The best player in 2024 is actually not absent from the previous seasons, but rarely recreates high performance before.
Guardiola, Foden, Haaland, Rodri, which could be bricks to build a new championship. Or, if this is a collective both regression and transfer, they can go through another mixed season, lacking in mind that have brought the previous generations to the top of glory.
Because with Man City, after the years full of guarantee, this seems to be an uncertain era.
