Pep Guardiola’s status as one of the most influential managers to have ever graced the game is set in stone.
Big names within the game such as Rayan Cherki paid Guardiola the ultimate compliment by naming him as the greatest manager in the history of football.
While Manchester City are in somewhat of a dark place, if there is any tactician who can turn them into serial winners again at the drop of a hat, it is none other than the two-time treble-winner.
With Pep Guardiola seeming optimistic ahead of next season, City’s domestic rivals have every reason to be potentially fearful.
Enzo Maresca leading Chelsea to FIFA Club World Cup triumph highlights Pep Guardiola’s influence
However, the Catalan does not have much left to prove, with his legacy further emboldened as Cole Palmer’s heroics against Paris Saint-Germain meant his former assistant Enzo Maresca has won the FIFA Club World Cup as Chelsea boss.
Before managing Leicester City during the 2023/2024 season, Maresca worked alongside Pep Guardiola as Manchester City won the treble.
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Much like Mikel Arteta, who won the FA Cup with Arsenal, the Italian has tasted success as a first-team manager for a top club, winning the Europa Conference League and the Club World Cup — masterminding a surprise thumping over PSG.
Enzo Maresca with his arm around Pep Guardiola's shoulder after Chelsea vs Manchester City
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Lionel Messi pinpointed Pep Guardiola’s influence by revealing that players are taught how to play as per his former manager’s systemic demands from a young age nowadays.
Even managers such as Enzo Maresca are benefitting massively from working alongside Guardiola, as he may not only have been inspired by the veteran’s tactical ideas but also his command over a dressing room and training regimen.
Maresca lauded Guardiola as the best manager in Premier League history and unlike other greats to have graced English football such as Sir Alex Ferguson and Jurgen Klopp, the City boss seems to have inspired a whole host of managers to venture into the coaching world and go on to become success stories.
Comparing Pep Guardiola and Sir Alex Ferguson’s coaching trees
While a debate continues to rage on about whether Sir Alex Ferguson and Pep Guardiola is the greatest manager in the history of the game, the coaches they have influenced and their careers may hand the latter an edge in any such conversations.
PEP GUARDIOLA’S COACHING TREE SIR ALEX FERGUSON’S COACHING THREE
ENZO MARESCA MICHAEL CARRICK
VINCENT KOMPANY WAYNE ROONEY
MIKEL ARTETA CARLOS QUEIROZ
XAVI RENE MEULENSTEEN
Almost every player or assistant to have worked under Guardiola has won a trophy and that too at the highest level.
Just last season, Vincent Kompany helped Bayern Munich dethrone Bayer Leverkusen as Bundesliga champions.
The same cannot be said for the figures Ferguson influenced.
Enzo Maresca looks like the man to continue to lead Chelsea to silverware and he would certainly attribute his time under Pep Guardiola as a reason behind his development as a coach.