Pep Guardiola’s reputation is the only thing keeping him going at Manchester City, says Paul Merson, who slammed the Catalan for trying to ‘be too clever’.
The jury is out on Guardiola following another failed Champions League campaign, which saw Manchester City suffer their third consecutive quarter-final exit last week to Lyon.
The Citizens were left stunned as a Maxwel Comet goal and Moussa Dembele’s brace enabled Lyon to claim a 3-1 victory despite Kevin De Bruyne equalizing in the second half.
The defeat put Guardiola’s abysmal European record for City in the spotlight again. True, he’s won eight domestic honors, including back-to-back Premier League titles, since arriving in 2016. But as Yaya Toure recently pointed out, the Catalan was signed to win the Champions League.
Even the City supporters were calling for Pep to leave after that shock loss to Lyon, with Merson equally unimpressed.
“Pep Guardiola is lucky to still have a job because if he was anybody else Manchester City would have sacked him by now,” the former Arsenal star-turned-pundit wrote on his Daily Star column.
“This season has been an absolute disaster for them – and Guardiola is the only manager in football who would keep his job after failing so badly.
“City finished almost 20 points behind Liverpool. They lost in the Champions League to the team who finished SEVENTH in France. They lost an FA Cup semi-final to Arsenal – against his old assistant.
“Okay, they won the League Cup. Wow. With their squad, that’s almost a gimme. They’ve got £50m players in every position!
“Anyone else would have been sacked. But he gets away with it because of his reputation. Look, Guardiola might come back next season and win the lot. But I very much doubt it.
Since taking over at Man City, Pep Guardiola has spent around £762.3m on transfers. He still hasn’t got further in the Champions League than David Moyes did in his first season he was in charge of Manchester United.👀 pic.twitter.com/RfYXteOjTA
— Football Talk (@Football_TaIk) August 15, 2020
Guardiola has been accused of showing his opponents too much respect in the past. The Lyon was a typical example, as City seemed flat and ponderous.
“I just think he tries to be too clever all the time. When he tinkers and it comes off, everyone says he’s a genius,” Merson continued.
“But how many times has he tinkered now in the Champions League and lost? He’s there to make City the best team in Europe. He hasn’t even got them into the final!
“Why did he play Kevin De Bruyne further up the pitch against Lyon? Who’s going to get him the ball, Ilkay Gundogan? I don’t think so.
“Why did he play three at the back against Lyon when you know they are going to sit back and counter? He tries to be too clever for his own good.
“Let’s be honest, he’s very fortunate they haven’t sacked him.”
Although Xavi recently pointed out that a few more signings in key areas will help Guardiola turn things around again.
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