Retirement Tour
On June 5, 2008, Laporta shook hands with Pep Guardiola, who had only been in charge for a year, and took over the baton from Rijkaard to become Barcelona's first-team coach. Pep Guardiola's career late through the trials and tribulations, but also because of this experience, more stable and sophisticated, to lead Barcelona to climb the heights of the position of the manager.
Guardiola took over the "dream three" Barcelona, inherited the mantle of Rijkaard, Puyol, Piqué, Alves, Busquets, Harvey, Iniesta, Henry, Eto'o, and even Messi, these players constitute the team's main framework. Tactically, Guardiola retained the essence of Rijkaard and introduced advanced tiki-taka concepts and tactics such as on-the-spot counter-strike, allowing the team to pass the ball with a strong purpose, not only to escape from the opponent's looting, but also to build up strength for the next attack.
In the 2008/09 season, Guardiola led the team to win the La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League, and in the 2009/10 season, he repeated the feat by winning the Spanish Super Cup, the UEFA Super Cup, and the Club World Cup, making it a "six-title" campaign. 2010/2011 saw the team win the La Liga title, and the UEFA Champions League, Spanish Super Cup, European Super Cup, and Club World Cup, making it a "five-title" campaign. In the 2010/2011 season, the team won the La Liga title again, and won the Champions League, Spanish Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup, realizing the "Five Crowns". However, in the 2011/12 season, Pep Guardiola, due to locker room problems, high-level tension and player infighting, Barcelona suffered losses in both the league and the Champions League, Pep Guardiola announced his resignation at the end of the season on April 27, 2012, stating that his body was severely overdrawn and he needed to rest. Guardiola's four seasons at Barcelona, 247 games led the team to win 14 titles. The first time coaching a luxury team that suffered a setback, Guardiola's response and handling of the situation, perhaps hidden unknown emotions of excitement.
On January 16, 2013, Bayern handed over the coaching whip to Pep Guardiola, and the two sides signed a three-year contract with an annual salary of up to 16 million euros. Guardiola was once a target of Manchester City as well. In the first season, Bayern successfully defended the Bundesliga title, but in the Champions League quarterfinals encounter Real Madrid, the first round of 0-1 defeat, the second round of 0-4 at home, a tragic loss, a record of Pep Guardiola coaching since the biggest loss. The German media heavily criticized Guardiola's style of play, that Bayern has Neuer, Boateng, Lahm, Thiago, Muller, Götze and other top players, but because of Guardiola's ball-control style of play and lost to Real Madrid's fast counterattack.2014/2015 season, Bayern again entered the Champions League quarterfinals, but unfortunately eliminated by Barcelona.2015/16 season, Bayern in the Champions League quarterfinals stopped at Atletico Madrid, three consecutive years in the Champions League by the La Liga three beatings, the team also exists "anti-Gua alliance", Muller, Ribery, piglet and Götze and so on have expressed their dissatisfaction with Pep Guardiola. Although Bayern is not Barcelona, Guardiola although talented but less influential than the Barcelona period, to the domestic double, the league three consecutive titles, three seasons of a total of six trophies to end the term of achievement, and eventually joined Manchester City.
In the 2016/17 season, Guardiola signed a three-year contract with Manchester City until the summer of 2019, with an annual salary of up to £15 million. Guardiola led Manchester City to six consecutive victories in the beginning, but then the team's situation fluctuated, and finally ranked third in the league with 23 wins, 9 draws, 6 losses and 78 points.In the 2017/18 season, Guardiola opened the mode of "buy-buy-buy", introducing players such as Walker, Mendy, Danilo, etc., and Manchester City won the Premier League title and became the only team to reach 100 points in the Premier League in the history of the Premier League. In the 2018/2019 season, Pep Guardiola once again led Manchester City to win the Premier League title, becoming the first English team to win the Hometown Triple Crown. But in Europe, Manchester City was drawn by Tottenham Hotspur, stopping in the last eight.2019/20 season, Manchester City lost the Premier League title, the Champions League lost to Lyon 1-3, stopping in the last eight for the third consecutive year.2020/21 season, Manchester City regained the Premier League title, the Champions League is also a history of the finals, but 0-1 defeat Chelsea lost the title.
Whether at Barcelona or Manchester City, Guardiola has encountered questionable stars. Yaya Toure was once considered one of the best backs in the world, but he also admitted that Guardiola was his nemesis, leaving the team twice because he was driven out by Guardiola. Toure, who once questioned Guardiola's racism, later joined Qingdao Yellow Sea to play in the Central League and helped the team reach the Super League. Toure said: "The most commendable thing about our fans is that they know how to respect the players, when I I play on the field, and not because I am black and fans booed or disrespect, which is much better than who do not respect the European fans!"
