Throughout his tenure as the manager of Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City, Pep Guardiola has secured 12 league titles in 15 seasons. It is an astonishing achievement indeed…!!!
Though Manchester City encountered stiff competition in the Premier League in the 2023-2024 season, Pep Guardiola’s team prevailed, successfully holding off title contenders Arsenal and Liverpool.
In addition to those 12 championship-winning seasons, Guardiola’s teams have also finished second twice and third once.
Only three managers have the distinction of winning a league title ahead of the Catalan coach in a league campaign. These are the select few who have accomplished this feat.
Jose Mourinho – Real Madrid (2011-12)
Jose Mourinho took the helm at Real Madrid in 2010, tasked with dethroning the Catalans.
Under Mourinho’s leadership, Madrid clinched their first Clasico win during the Guardiola era in the 2011 Copa del Rey final. Despite this, they fell to their arch-rivals in both the league and the Champions League competitions. Nevertheless, the cup final win provided a solid foundation for Mourinho’s team, and in his second season, they secured the league title with a record-breaking 100 points and 121 goals.
Barcelona ended the season nine points adrift, even though Lionel Messi achieved a personal record of 50 league goals. An evidently worn-out Guardiola announced his exit just before the season’s close, opting for a well-deserved sabbatical year in New York.
The intense rivalry with Mourinho had left its mark on the Catalan coach
Antonio Conte – Chelsea (2016-17)
Guardiola took the helm at Manchester City in the summer of 2016, having secured the Bundesliga title each year during his three-season tenure at Bayern Munich.
City kicked off with six consecutive Premier League victories in the 2016-17 season, but as autumn arrived, their performance waned, culminating in a lacklustre first season for Guardiola, marking his only season without a trophy.
Meanwhile, Chelsea, under new management with Antonio Conte, faced early season setbacks with losses to Liverpool and Arsenal, leading Conte to adopt a three-back formation. This change sparked a remarkable turnaround, propelling them on a record-setting streak of 13 straight wins from October to December.
Under Conte’s leadership, Chelsea clinched the championship with an outstanding 91 points, finishing a significant 15 points clear of Guardiola’s City.
Jurgen Klopp – Liverpool (2019-20)
Klopp was at the helm of Borussia Dortmund when Guardiola took over at Bayern Munich, setting a high bar for the rest of the Bundesliga.
Klopp then took charge of Liverpool eight months before Guardiola arrived in England. In his inaugural full season, Liverpool secured fourth place, narrowly trailing City by one spot and two points.
In the 2018-19 season, Liverpool amassed 97 points, a score that would typically guarantee a league title, except they finished just a point shy of Guardiola’s squad.
However, Liverpool rebounded from this close call and decisively won the championship the following year. The Reds lost only two points in their first 27 matches, making their eventual triumph with 99 points a mere formality.
Although Guardiola’s team finished 18 points adrift, they did manage a 4-0 win against the newly-crowned champions at the Etihad after the lockdown.
Writer
Samuel Kojo Adjei
