When Guardiola arrived in Manchester in 2016, few anticipated such a long tenure. Previously, the Spanish manager led Barcelona for four years and Bayern Munich for three years. He ultimately managed Manchester City in 592 matches, 183 more than his combined time at Barcelona and Bayern.

Under Guardiola, Manchester City increased their premier league titles from two to eight, trailing Manchester United's record of 13 by only five. However, Guardiola's first year was not smooth. Manchester City finished third in the premier league in the 2016-2017 season, exited the champions league in the round of 16, and failed to win any titles. This marked the only season in Guardiola's managerial career without a trophy.

Just one year later, Manchester City underwent a complete transformation. In the 2017-2018 season, they became the first team in history to reach 100 points in the premier league, winning the title with a record 19-point margin. This "once-in-a-century" team also set a record of 18 consecutive wins from august to december 2017, an achievement no other club has replicated in the premier league. That season, Manchester City scored 106 goals in the league, a record that still stands. The club also became the first team to win 32 matches in a single season. Guardiola's dominance elevated the standard for winning the premier league, especially during intense competition with Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool.

In the 2018-2019 season, Manchester City achieved a domestic treble, winning the premier league, FA Cup, and League Cup. This period also saw their absolute dominance in the League Cup, with four consecutive titles from 2018 to 2021, matching Liverpool's record from the early 1980s.

After losing the 2021 champions league final, Manchester City needed two more years to claim Europe's most prestigious trophy. In june 2023, they defeated Inter Milan 1-0 in Istanbul to win their first champions league title, completing a historic continental treble. Rodri's goal also made Manchester City the second English club to achieve a European treble, following Manchester United in the 1998-1999 season. Guardiola made history as the first manager to win a European treble with two different clubs, after his feat with Barcelona in the 2008-2009 season.

Following their extraordinary 2022-2023 season, Manchester City went on to win the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. In the 2023-2024 season, they secured their fourth consecutive premier league title, an unprecedented achievement for any men's team in English football.

After their extraordinary 2022-2023 season, Manchester City went on to win the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. In the 2023-2024 season, they secured their fourth consecutive premier league title, an unprecedented achievement for any men's team in English football.

Last season, Manchester City's performance was considered a step back, with only 71 points, their lowest under Guardiola. However, they returned strongly this season with a domestic double, winning the FA Cup and League Cup. The victory over Arsenal at Wembley gave Guardiola his fifth League Cup, the most in the competition's history. Manchester City also became the first team to reach four consecutive FA Cup finals.

Excluding the Etihad Stadium, Wembley is the venue where Guardiola has appeared most frequently, with 26 matches, double the number of appearances at the next closest venues, Old Trafford and St James’ Park. This demonstrates the 55-year-old manager's consistent deep runs into English and European cup competitions. However, Guardiola has faced "nemeses." Manchester City has a losing record against Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool, with six wins, eight draws, and eight losses. He has also found particular difficulty at Tottenham's stadium, where Manchester City has lost six of ten matches.

Over his decade, Guardiola has used a total of 111 players. Bernardo Silva has made the most appearances with 459 matches, while Erling Haaland has scored the most goals with 161. Guardiola has also left a deep tactical imprint on English football with his possession-based style. Since his arrival in the premier league, Manchester City has achieved the highest possession percentage in the league for eight seasons. He also pioneered the trend of using midfielders as left-backs, with players like Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fabian Delph, and even Bernardo Silva.

Beyond creating new positions and swapping player roles, Guardiola's influence extends beyond Manchester City. Former manager Fabio Capello once remarked that "the entire football world spent a decade copying Guardiola," from playing out from the back, to goalkeepers participating in ball circulation, to pressing and space control. One of Guardiola's boldest decisions upon arriving at Manchester City was to drop England's number one goalkeeper, Joe Hart, after only a few weeks. Guardiola believed Hart did not fit his philosophy of a ball-playing goalkeeper. This action caused significant controversy and even led to Guardiola's regret, but it was later proven correct when Ederson joined the team and became a crucial link in Manchester City's possession-based system.

Guardiola's other statistics are equally remarkable. After 592 matches across all competitions, Manchester City has 416 wins, 86 draws, and only 90 losses, scoring 1,422 goals with a goal difference of +901. Guardiola's winning percentage at the Etihad is approximately 75%, a statistic almost unheard of for a long-serving premier league manager. According to Transfermarkt, Guardiola has spent over 2.3 billion USD on player transfers at Manchester City, nearly double the amount of the second-highest spending manager in Europe, Diego Simeone. However, FootballTransfers ranks Manchester City sixth in the premier league for net spend over the last five years.

In the 2025-2026 season, Guardiola reached 400 wins in English football in just 569 matches, the fastest in history. A number that encapsulates the glorious journey he has built for the blue side of Manchester over the past decade.

Vy Anh

Photo: Reuters, AP