MY ACCOUNT
Liverpool great Dietmar Hamann questioned the hype surrounding Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola as he insisted Reds’ boss Jurgen Klopp ranks above the Spaniard.
City welcome Liverpool to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday in a match widely billed as a title decider, with Klopp’s side cutting the leaders’ gap to just one point following a 10-game winning run.
Whether it’s Trent Alexander-Arnold against Joao Cancelo, Alisson versus Ederson or the influence of Mohamed Salah compared to Kevin De Bruyne, there are battles to be won across the pitch in Manchester.
But there will also be a focus on the touchline, with Guardiola facing old foe Klopp, who has defeated the former Bayern Munich boss more than any other manager in all competitions (eight).
The German tactician has only lost as many matches against Felix Magath (8) in his coaching career as he has against Guardiola, but Hamann placed his backing firmly on the Liverpool manager.
“When Klopp arrived at Anfield in 2015 and Guardiola at City a year later, the Premier League was hugely competitive and hard to win,” he wrote in his Daily Mail column.
“In just a few years they have turned it into a two-horse race. I simply wouldn’t have thought it was possible for two teams to dominate the Premier League in the way they have.
“But there are three current managers who I regard as more successful than Guardiola and I still don’t really get the hype that surrounds him.
“Jose Mourinho has won league titles in four different countries and the Champions League with two clubs, while Carlo Ancelotti’s record is second to none and about to get better if Real Madrid can win La Liga.
“And the third manager? For me, it’s Jurgen Klopp. What he has achieved on the budgets he has at Liverpool is remarkable. He is a truly exceptional manager. His great skill is in integrating players which is a talent Guardiola doesn’t possess in quite the same way.”
Since Guardiola’s arrival in England at the start of the 2016-17 season, City have taken a league-high 516 points and Liverpool are close behind with 488 points. Chelsea are a distant third on that list with 427 points.
But Hamann, who played for both Liverpool and City during his playing career, still believes Klopp holds the edge over Guardiola, due to how he adapts to his new signings, such as Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz.
“When Klopp signed Diogo Jota last season everyone questioned whether he would get anywhere near the team, but he was immediately involved,” he continued. “It’s been exactly the same with Luis Diaz.
“In fact, compare the case of Diaz to Jack Grealish and it goes some way to showing the difference between the managers.
“We’ve seen players come into the Premier League and you often need six to eight weeks to adjust because it’s a unique game. Diaz came in and he fired immediately because the style suits him.
“Look on the other side, you’ve got Grealish, who cost three times as much yet is struggling to make any sort of an impact. He’s a £100million player yet he still isn’t fully integrated.
“The way Liverpool players speak about their manager, they would run through brick walls for him. I’m not sure City’s players would do the same.
“You look at all the teams around Europe and I think Liverpool are the pick of the lot. And I wouldn’t swap this manager for any other. Including Guardiola.”
