In the second leg of the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League quarterfinals, the giants
Manchester City
The visitors defeated Borussia Dortmund with a 2-1 comeback, advancing to the semifinals with a 2-1 double in both the home and away legs. Although it is still too early to discuss the title, the historic significance of this moment for Guardiola cannot be overstated.
Looking back to the summer of 2008, Pep Guardiola, the young coach for the first time in charge of the Barcelona first-team coaching whip, at that time, he was only a rookie coach. At that time, Barcelona was experiencing the downturn of the "dream two dynasty".
However, the rest of the story is full of legends. 2008-09 season, Barcelona not only won the treble for the first time, but also became the all-time champions, winning all the trophies in the tournaments they could participate in, and in 2010-11 season, they won the Champions League again along with the La Liga triple crown.
Guardiola ended his coaching career at Barcelona after the 2011-12 season.
As a manager, Guardiola's achievements at Barcelona are undoubtedly unprecedented. However, there are those who believe that Guardiola's success at Barcelona was due in large part to the team's system and the greatest players of that era
Lionel Messi (1987-), Argentine footballer
Guardiola, in his prime, is desperate to prove that he is not inactive after leaving Barcelona and Lionel Messi.
In the summer of 2013, Pep Guardiola became the new manager of Bayern, who had just won the treble. From 2013-14 to 2015-16, Guardiola's Bayern won the Bundesliga for three consecutive seasons but never managed to win the Champions League.
In the summer of 2016, Pep Guardiola was again the new manager of Manchester City. The Premier League newcomer hired Guardiola at a high price, naturally expecting to create a breakthrough in the Champions League. For Guardiola, he still aspires to lift the Champions League trophy again after leaving Barcelona.
Guardiola's Manchester City went on to win the Premier League from 2016-17 to 2019-20, but met their Waterloo in the Champions League. Guardiola's predecessor, Manuel Pellegrini, had led City to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, creating the best finish in City's history. Guardiola in Barcelona and Bayern's coaching career, the worst Champions League results are also the quarterfinals. But after combining with Manchester City, Guardiola has never reached the quarterfinals in the Champions League.
In the 2017-18 season, Manchester City was eliminated by Liverpool in the Champions League quarterfinals, and Guardiola encountered huge doubts. When pushed by reporters, Guardiola said bluntly: to win the Champions League, there needs to be a top star like Messi in the lineup; if not, then a miracle is needed; neither, I can't do it.
Rumors have been swirling about Manchester City and Lionel Messi since 2020. Messi is in the twilight of his career and bringing him in at a high price (mainly player salary) would be a huge risk.
For Guardiola, perhaps there has been a rising star in the squad like Lionel Messi at Barcelona back in the day, in the form of 20-year-old England starlet Foden.
Foden scored the winning goal in both rounds of Manchester City's 2-1 home and away victories over Dortmund. Foden can be credited for City's historic run to the Champions League semi-finals for the first time during Guardiola's reign.
In September 2020, Foden was also exposed to the "rooming" incident, known as the "scum".
Foden has collected 13 goals and nine assists in 41 games so far this season.
Foden played a key role in both of City's Champions League quarter-final victories against Dortmund. Foden also won a direct battle against Harland, one of the hottest new stars in soccer today. Of course, the test is yet to come. In the semi-finals, City will face Paris, where Foden will be in direct contact with two of the biggest stars in the game, Neymar and Mbappe.
