Skip to main content

A dozen finals for Guardiola

The taste of success
With Barcelona securing their place in this year's Copa del Rey final during the week, Guardiola has now lead his side to twelve finals since he took over the Barça bench.

Maybe more impressively is Guardiola has only been coach since 2008. During his first season in charge, Guardiola led his side to both the Copa del Rey final and the Champions League final. Both trophies went to the Catalans and Pep earned his plaudits.

Next season Guardiola upped his final count to three. Starting the year with victories in both the Spanish and European Super cup against Athletic Bilbao and Shakhtar Donetsk respectively. During December of that year Barcelona beat Estudiantes to claim the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup. A trophy that signalled history as Barcelona became the first club to win the "Sextuple."

A record that has still not been achieved by any other club.

Barcelona and Guardiola again reached three finals during the 2010-11 season. Barça started the season with a Spanish Super cup win against Seville, recovering from a 3-1 away defeat in the first leg by hitting four with no reply in the home tie. After securing another La Liga title, Barcelona faced Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final. A Ronaldo header in extra time made this tie become the only final Guardiola had lost since he took control of the reigns.

Fans were not disheartened for long though as Barcelona outclassed Manchester United in the Champions League. Humiliating the Red Devils with a 3-1 win. Becoming Guardiola's second Champions League title in three years.

This year Guardiola already has four finals under his belt. Gaining revenge from Madrid with a 5-4 aggregate win which gained them the Spanish Super Cup. Next they won the European Super Cup by defeating Porto 3-0 in Monaco.

Their third final and trophy came in Japan against Santos. Before kick off many had claimed that this would be a tough test for Barça especially with Santos' star player Neymar, who happens to be a transfer target for Guardiola, on the field. Barcelona again outclassed their opponent and Neymar commented that they "got taught how to play football."

With the season only halfway completed, Barcelona have a chance to increase their final count to five. Their fourth will come against Athletic Bilbao in the King's Cup while they are still to face Bayer Leverkusen in the first knockout stage of the Champions League.

Pep Guardiola has reach 12 finals and won 11 of them in only four seasons. An accolade only he can boast. Being 41, Guardiola has the potential to increase this final count and become the most successful manager in Barcelona's history. Over to you then Pep.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Title Race

As we pass the halfway stage of this Liga BBVA season, a team not many would have guessed sits on top of the table. After the success of a league title and a Champions League, many would've predicted Barcelona would be the dominant force in the two horse race that is La Liga. But after a series of shock results, that saw them drop points to Getafe, Athletico Bilbao, Sevilla, Real Sociedad and Valencia, they are currently three points behind leaders Real Madrid. This may not seem like a huge gap but La Liga is not like other leagues such as the Premier League, where there seems to be an upset every week, and the reality is Real Madrid face little concern about dropping points. Especially with the strength in the depth they have. Mourinho knows this, but he is also very wary that the gap has been reduced to three points. So when Madrid face the daunting task of going to the Camp Nou and coming away with a result, Mourinho will be hoping the gap has increased in case Barcelona take ...
2 comments
Read more

Rotation, rotation, rotation: How does Valverde keep his squad happy?

For most FIFA career mode players, there will come a point where you simply have too many superstars to fit into the starting XI. Antoine Griezmann playing in the Joan Gamper trophy Due to practical issues such as money and the fact real humans can not be told to go away by the mere tap of an A button, this is rarely a luxury afford to real life managers. But for Ernesto Valverde, going in to what could potentially be his final season at the club, this is his reality. He can boast one of the most star-laden teams in Europe but the problem remains the same. How does 23 fit into 11? Barcelona's summer recruitment involved the arrivals of Antoine Griezmann and Frenkie de Jong to an increasingly busy forward line and midfield three, meaning Valverde must begin the plate-spinning akin task of trying to keep everyone happy. His preference for a 4-4-2 last season could either have been one of choice or one of necessity as Ousmane Dembélé struggled with injuries but it seems u...
Post a Comment
Read more

Més que un Club

This is a motto etched onto every true Barça fan's heart. Their support burns brightly even at the club's darkest hour. All for the same reason. Because they believe. They believe not only in what they see on a football field but because of what FC Barcelona represents. The politics of the club seem to reflect the whole of Catalonia. These roots were sewn many years ago in a time when Catalans risked imprisonment if they spoke their own language in public or showed any form of Catalan pride. At a time when General Francisco Franco suppressed any sign of Catalan nationalism, it seemed Spain and Catalonia were on very different paths. Exactly the way the public viewed the two Spanish football giants. Real Madrid represented Franco's Spain while Barcelona represented a sanctuary for proud Catalans. In the present day Franco's strict regime is over and Catalans are free to speak their language, but the image of the two clubs remains unchanged. Barça reflect a proud na...
Post a Comment
Read more