With the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City after him, Pep Guardiola, until very recently, was the hottest manager in Europe without a job. Announcing an end to his "Sabbatical" from football, he signed a deal with F.C. Bayern on 16 January, 2013, bringing an end to the long debated spectacle of his potential destination. Having to replace Jupp Heynckes at the end of the season, Pep Guardiola sure does have a star studded squad at his disposal at Bayern Munich. With Arjen Robben, Thomas Muller, Franck Ribery, and possibly even Robert Lewandowski, F.C.Bayern doesn't present Guardiola with the sort of challenge that top managers today would strive for. His surprising decision sparks a huge debate.
To avoid the inevitable rise of the Madridista
We've been seeing the bitter rivalry between Real and Barcelona flair up for quite some time now, which as a matter of fact has been the highlight of Spanish football for over a decade. The key men, Mourinho and Guardiola, were at each other's hair for quite some time now. The war between Madrid and Barcelona was more of a war between their two managers. Mourinho, having proved himself by winning league titles in all the countries he's managed in, finally came on top when Real Madrid snatched the La Liga title from Barcelona last season. Pep Guardiola, as successful as his counterpart on most frontiers, is still given the lower card because of having so called, the best squad in the history of football, personified by Lionel Messi himself, as well as the dancing duo of Xavi and Iniesta, at the helm during his time at Barcelona. It was as if Guardiola feared the Madrid revival under Mourinho, when he announced his plans to resign as the manager of the greatest club of the new millennium. In the end, it was yet another battle that dear old Jose had won.
To avoid the Special One himself
To add salt to his wounds, Pep Guardiola arguably picked the strongest of the suitors available when he joined Bayern. Not to diminish the pride of respective English clubs, none can argue that Bayern had the biggest dominion over her league out of all of Guariola's possible destinations. As much as Jurgen Klopp and Dortmund are loved, experts see it as only a matter of time, in fact a short while, when F.C.Bayern retake Germany. There are rumors that Guardiola demanded a budget over 100 million pounds to shop with, which isn't all that away from Bayern's grasps, judging by her financial vastness. The cardinal point however, is that Pep Guardiola took the simplest of all the routes available to him. Wait a minute, it only gets worse.
Jose Mourinho re-validating his claims of wanting to manage in England is another conclusion, or rather another theory, that explains Pep Guariola's unforeseen move to Bayern Munich. Poor old Pep, Good luck. We just hope you don't take another sabbatical quite soon.
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