Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has praised Man City manager Pep Guardiola and the impact he has made – as a coach – on the beautiful game throughout his career.
Guardiola has been widely hailed as one of the best coaches of all time after his prolific spells in Spain, Germany and England. He didn’t receive his success without significant financial power in the transfer market and it will be intriguing to see how he does when he decides to leave City.
At Barcelona, he won three La Liga titles, two Champions League trophies and two Copa del Reys.
Although he didn’t deliver the Champions League at Bayern Munich, Guardiola still managed to win three Bundesliga titles before moving to Man City.
City have dominated English football during Guardiola’s reign, winning five Premier League titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups and the Champions League.
Moreover, Guardiola has won the treble twice with Barcelona and Man City.
Fernandes hails Guardiola
Fernandes has witnessed a lot of Guardiola’s success since he joined United from Sporting Lisbon in 2020.
After losing twice to City in the league this season, there is a chance United will have one more meeting with their rivals – in the FA Cup final for a consecutive season.
Fernandes has now admitted that Guardiola is the “best coach in the world” due to how he has changed the game.
Speaking to Portuguese newspaper A Bola, Fernandes said: “We are talking about the best coach in the world, without a shadow of a doubt.
“He is probably the coach who most changed the game of football. Nowadays, everyone wants to be Guardiola, there’s no need to hide that.
“All teams, from the second to the first divisions, everyone tries to play like City and everyone tries to find the dynamics that City has because they have results and success.
“For me, having praise from a coach like Guardiola is something spectacular, because, as I said, we are talking about a coach that I really appreciate and who, for me, today, is the best coach in the world.”
Guardiola is a fan of Fernandes
Speaking to reporters ahead of the Manchester derby last month, Guardiola praised Fernandes.
“He is an exceptional player,” Guardiola said, as quoted by The Metro.
“Especially the consistency to play in every single game and in every single competition.
“I admire him a lot for that. He is a guy that when he has the ball, something is going to happen.
“In set pieces, in connections with players up front with [Alejandro] Garnacho, with Rashford, all the strikers they have up there.
“What can I say, he is a really, really important player.”
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