Why Pep Guardiola deserved Manager of the Year honors
By Joe Evans
Why Pep Guardiola’s record-breaking season and Manchester City’s demolition of the 2017-2018 Premier League set them apart from the crowd.
Anyone who’s followed the Premier League this season was aware of Manchester City’s dominance.
City looked worlds ahead of their competition this season, shattering records and milestones on the way to their third title.
While many attribute their dominance to the quality of their squad, the obvious puppet-master of City’s masterclass is their manager, Pep Guardiola.
Guardiola’s side broke an astonishing 11 records this season, racking up 100 points, scoring 106 goals, winning 32 games and winning the league by 19 points.
On top of their league dominance, they also competed mightily in cup competitions, reaching the quarterfinals of the Champions League and winning the EFL Cup.
That being said, there has been some chatter that Guardiola wasn’t the best choice for Manager of the Year honors, with Burnley’s Sean Dyche and Liverpool’s heavy-metal leader Jurgen Klopp both receiving plaudits.
While it’s undeniable both have led their teams to fantastic seasons, Burnley finishing in seventh and qualifying for the Europa League and Liverpool finishing fourth and reaching the Champions League final, neither manager has matched the feats of Guardiola.
On top of that, neither had anywhere near the expectations City had to deal with. The expectations of Guardiola and his team were unquestionably higher than those of Dyche and Klopp.
Burnley and Dyche were the surprise darlings of the Premier League season, and it will be fun to cheer them on in the Europa League next year. As for Liverpool, their run to the Champions League final, beating City along the way, has been one of the best storylines of the season.
But to suggest either deserved the Manager of the Year award ahead of Guardiola is a bold leap. City didn’t just break records this season; they played some of the most thrilling attacking soccer the Premier League has seen.
While they stumbled in the Champions League, they massively overachieved in the league even with City supporters’ sky-high expectations and they did it in style, playing attractive, fluid soccer.
Next: The best player on every team at the World Cup
In Guardiola’s second season at the helm for City, he got the best he could out of this squad. After what was considered a trophy-less failure in his first Premier League season, this was the City team we all expected.
Many called Guardiola a “fraud” or proclaimed he was overrated after his trophy-less first campaign. City’s Chairman Khaldoon al-Mubarak went as far as to describe the season as “disappointing.”
For Guardiola to respond like this after a season of turmoil is astounding and he deserves every award and acclaim that’s piled upon him.
Now, with his City future assured for another few years, Guardiola and his Manchester City men only have one mountain yet to climb: the Champions League.