Manchester City – Bayern Munich: How Thomas Tuchel became one of Pep Guardiola’s pet peeves

To rub shoulders with the victims of coach Pep Guardiola is to offer yourself a fairly faithful summary of what he has done best in football since 2009. Jürgen Klopp, José Mourinho, Mauricio Pochettino, Antonio Conte, Arsène Wenger, Carlo Ancelotti, Luis Enrique: the list is not exhaustive but almost.

Among them, Thomas Tuchel holds a special place. His – frankly honorable – statistical record of three wins in ten matches with Mainz, Dortmund then Chelsea does not say the essential: he is the only one to have made Guardiola bite the dust in a high-stakes final.

The memory is not so distant and remains a scar for the Catalan, even if he defended himself Monday in a press conference. “I was sad, I congratulated him after the gamehe first admitted before explaining that all this was in the retro. It happened, we saw the match again with my staff a month later. It wasn’t as bad as I thought. It was a very tight game but we forgot about it and we try again. I don’t live in the past“.

In his memories, Tuchel’s teams have great strength: everything is difficult against them. Score, press, defend and win duels. But it is on another point that Guardiola insisted on Monday: the element of surprise.

Asked about the difference between Julian Nagelsmann and Thomas Tuchel, he first drew up a parallel eulogy. “They are two very creative managers, full of ideashe admitted before returning to the Tuchel case in more detail. Maybe he’ll do something new on Tuesday. He’s really imaginative“.

In 2021, it was above all Guardiola’s approach to the final that had been commented on. The absence of a professional defensive midfielder had allowed the Blues to sting in transition, as on the only goal of the match (1-0). Opposite, Tuchel had simply responded with a working environment and devourers of space.

Still, between the two, the compliments are not feigned and the relationship between the two men has always been marked by a mixture of fascination and respect. Fascination since Tuchel has explained on many occasions that he has completely changed his approach to the game by observing Barça de Guardiola.

Dinner in 2014 and fascination

“I was such a fan of Pep when he was a player and when he became a coachhad recognized the German, before the final of 2021. I was a coach at the academy and then in the Bundesliga with Mainz, but I don’t think I missed a game (of Guardiola with Barcelona), because there was so much to learn“.

To the point of offering him a tactical dinner in 2014, a memory that the two men keep in mind. Respect also when Guardiola believes that his sidekick “makes football better“in 2022 before feeling publicly”Sorry” for him and his team at the time of the micmac at the club, caused by the conflict in Ukraine.

When discussing the upcoming confrontation, Tuchel did not seek to minimize the power of City: for him, the Citizens are the best in Europe. “The way City will play is quite clearhe explained. You can see the influence Pep had on this team after six or seven years there. They are an ultra-offensive and very fit team“. A team that he will therefore take pleasure in trying to trap. Just to maintain a reputation as a scarecrow that he likes to confirm.