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The Pep myth

White city Boy said:
This “Pep style’ has run its course as far as I can see . It’s actually making English football boring .
City for example , got what they deserved this afternoon . They were so poor and almost refused to play forward . Teams like Southampton, and nearly every football team in Britain , including my lot want to play five a side keep ball and just won’t play forward quickly. Like it’s better to keep the ball in our own half rather than go direct
dare I say it but when Pep quits, hopefully teams will stop trying to copy this nonsense and start playing more direct .Pep had huge success and did so much for the game but the need for lemons like Russell Martin have grown obsessed with possession almost more than goals. City are proving that teams have the answer to this style of play now
I realise this is a bit of a sweeping statement but hopefully this possession for possessions sake will die out a little and the excitement will return to English football as at the moment it’s pretty bloody dull.
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And don't forget the inverted full backs and the playing out from the back.
 

forever changes said:
Think he’s had enough of it now. Think he’ll pack it in if they don’t quality for CL automatically.
Might go to manage a national team
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The 3 obvious ones were

Spain - albeit as a Catalan nationalist supporter it’s tough, they just won the Euros and the manager has won 23/28 games
England - Tuchel
USA - for the World Cup, but Poch has gone there

Germany or Italy maybe?
 
chunkyshanhawk53 said:
That’d mean a nearly 2 year break, I’d be surprised
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Would you? He doesn’t seem a happy fella at the minute and he already said this is his last club job.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him do a “Klopp” and all but retire until something like that comes-up. Where does he go from here? PSG want to won’t he Champions League, which they won’t, Italian sides don’t have the coin and I can’t see him going somewhere like the Middle East just for a payday.
 
Father Jack Hackett said:
Would you? He doesn’t seem a happy fella at the minute and he already said this is his last club job.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him do a “Klopp” and all but retire until something like that comes-up. Where does he go from here? PSG want to won’t he Champions League, which they won’t, Italian sides don’t have the coin and I can’t see him going somewhere like the Middle East just for a payday.
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All fair challenges. I just think a 2 year break is a long time.

Will see I guess!
 
It's well documented in various books and articles from insiders and those who have worked with him, that 3-4 years is about the maximum that a Pep stint can generally be sustained at one club, such is his intensity.

The fact he's into year 8 and just shy of 500 games at City now is mad in itself and I'd guess double what he or anyone expected when he first arrived.

A lot of the players in the current squad have done relatively long stints with him and whilst the decline has been sudden, it's no surprise that the message and intensity has eventually gotten a bit stale amongst a group that have won everything there is to win, and then some.

If you read any of the Pep Confidential books or the others from that author, it's hard to imagine surviving a week with Pep never mind multiple years!
 
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chunkyshanhawk53 said:
I’m sure I’ll get tons of abuse for this, so I’ll caveat in advance. He’s clearly a top coach. This is more a “is he as good as he thinks he is?” post

it’s now 10 years since he won the champions league. Despite having pretty much unlimited money at City and coaching Bayern, one of the biggest clubs on the planet

He got somewhat fortunate with Barca as he inherited arguably the best player ever in his prime

look at his City numbers. He’s been great domestically. But he should be when you look at what he’s bought. The transfer fees are from memory, so tell me I’m wrong

Ederson £35m (one of the highest fees ever at the time)
Walker £50m
Mendy £50m (even without the news he’s been crap)
Cancelo £40m+
Dias, Stones, Ake, Laporte at a combined £220m ish
Rodri £60m
De Bruyne £57m
Silva £35m
Jesus £27m
Mahrez £60m
Grealish £100m
Torres £25m

there will be more. Probably only one looks a shocker, but given the money surely he has to win more?

who has he sold at a profit? Sane?

who has he developed? Foden?

I’ll get pelters, but 10 years since a CL. With that money. He’s not the genius he thinks he is?
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he never inherited Messi, Xavi, Iniesta et al, he coached them at under 18 level...in essence he developed them and when he was elevated from youth team to first team they were steeped in how he wanted to play.
its like suggesting fergie had nowt to do with scholes, beckham et al.
given money that Arteta has spent by your logic he is an abject failure to
people on here still laud keane, yet in terms of wasting money and winning nowt he is peerless
 
They haven’t bought well for a few transfer windows now but they are far from done. They are having a horrendous time at the moment but will click back into gear. Still plenty to play for.
 
White city Boy said:
This “Pep style’ has run its course as far as I can see . It’s actually making English football boring .
City for example , got what they deserved this afternoon . They were so poor and almost refused to play forward . Teams like Southampton, and nearly every football team in Britain , including my lot want to play five a side keep ball and just won’t play forward quickly. Like it’s better to keep the ball in our own half rather than go direct
dare I say it but when Pep quits, hopefully teams will stop trying to copy this nonsense and start playing more direct .Pep had huge success and did so much for the game but the need for lemons like Russell Martin have grown obsessed with possession almost more than goals. City are proving that teams have the answer to this style of play now
I realise this is a bit of a sweeping statement but hopefully this possession for possessions sake will die out a little and the excitement will return to English football as at the moment it’s pretty bloody dull.
Click to expand...
The possession pressing game has evolved as footballer fitness has reached new levels.

Teams are no longer prepared to have a lazy winger or goal lagging striker, or heaven forbid, two. They're playing total football with even the goalkeeper joining in.

Every player is now the equivalent of the old box to box midfielder in terms of fitness and they're now middle distance standard athletes.

I acknowledge your frustration with the trend and lord knows we see some hilarious consequences of trying to get keepers playing out from the back, but the possession pressing game is not going to go away.

Something else is likely to evolve from it though
 
knownowt said:
he never inherited Messi, Xavi, Iniesta et al, he coached them at under 18 level...in essence he developed them and when he was elevated from youth team to first team they were steeped in how he wanted to play.
its like suggesting fergie had nowt to do with scholes, beckham et al.
given money that Arteta has spent by your logic he is an abject failure to
people on here still laud keane, yet in terms of wasting money and winning nowt he is peerless
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Still peddling the anti-Keane rhetoric I see.

Hilarious how much he rattles you.
 
For is next challenge why doesn't he rock up at a Stoke or Preston and see how good the greatest manager of all time is.🤔
 
Pudding said:
can’t argue with his win record but just watched that derby and can’t believe how defeated he looks. He’s absolutely disintegrated in a few months.
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Wonder if any of the boards resident physiologists could come up with an assessment of him , I genuinely think he’s on the verge of a breakdown.
 
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