MAESTRO VERSUS MAGICIAN
As Barca coach he mentored Messi to the very top, but now Guardiola must find a way to tame the special talent he helped create
The past will collide with the present this evening in the Nou Camp. The team that Pep built versus, well, the team that Pep built. The maestro will come face to face with the magician.
however hard some may try, it is i mpossible to ignore the twin personality cults at the heart of tonight’s game in Barcelona. On the one side stands arguably the greatest player ever to lace up boots, on the other, his former guide and mentor — a footballing revolutionary intent on reinforcing his reputation for shaking up the established order.
Pep Guardiola, the head coach who l eft the world gasping in admiration while guiding Barca to two Champions League titles, takes his Bayern Munich team to his old stomping ground in search of many things.
A result good enough to give them at least a shot at reaching the Final after next week’s second leg back in Germany, obviously. Personal redemption for himself and many of the players swept aside by Real Madrid at t his stage of t he competition last year, too.
In order to achieve those two goals, though, Guardiola must first do the thing guaranteed to raise the stress levels of any opposing coach. Namely, shut down Lionel Messi.
The Argentine genius, making a rare appearance before the media yesterday, rather oddly tried to distance himself from the man who helped make hi m t he best footballer on the planet — declaring: ‘We had a fantastic relationship when he was here and I have seen him a few times since he left.
‘But we don’t have any kind of relationship now. I haven’t kept in touch with Pep since he left.
‘What I achieved with Guardiola was brilliant. I grew and learnt a lot. We were fortunate enough to win lots of titles under him. he’s the kind of coach that analyses everything so he will know all about the Barcelona players who weren’t here when he was.
‘Guardiola knows us — but we know him very well, too. We know what he asks of his team and his players.
‘I would expect the crowd to cheer for Pep because he won everything while he was coach here. Once the match starts, then the fans will cheer for us as normal.
‘I don’t like comparing coaches. every one of them is different and we expect changes when one coach leaves and another arrives. Both Luis enrique and Pep try to be close to the players and create a good group.’
Messi said the Barca players ‘don’t like the way we lost’ to Bayern at this stage two years ago, the Catalans on the receiving end of a 7-0 aggregate thrashing by the Bavarians.
Much has changed at both clubs since then, though. Guardiola took over f rom Champions League winner Jupp heynckes i n the summer of 2013, while Luis enrique replaced Tata Martino at the start of the current campaign.
There’s been a lot of background chatter about Messi and enrique being at loggerheads, despite the team sitting top of La Liga, reaching the final of the Copa del Rey and standing on the brink of yet another major european final.
Messi has been at pains to praise his new boss, insisting yesterday: ‘I think Barcelona adapted well to the new coach — we went from less to more. Now we’re on top form and excited about winning the title we’re so close to. We are in very good form now.
‘The coach gave me the freedom to move around as I wish in attack. I have the freedom to play open and move into the centre, but it depends on the match.
‘Last season was tough for me, on and off the pitch. I was unlucky enough to sustain injuries and return but not feel as comfortable as I wanted. Lucky enough, this season was different and I feel a lot better.
‘I consider myself to be one more player in this team. We all want the same thing which is to win titles. We all have the right to feel the way we want and be comfortable with that.
‘ No one i s under any extra pressure but both clubs are aiming to reach the Final. We are always under obligation to win it all because of the greatness of the club. I would talk more about obligation than pressure.
‘What makes this season special is that we are fighting for all three titles. Last season we didn’t win any, so this season we want to win important trophies.’
Any Barca coach will always be judged against the standards set by Pep, whose 14 trophies in four golden years set the bar almost impossibly high. enrique has more than tinkered with the style, the arrival of Luis Suarez adding some directness to a team who had been guilty of playing themselves into cul-de-sacs on occasion.
At their best, though, Barcelona remain a team capable of playing fantasy football, finding a pass that doesn’t appear possible, creating new and painful ways to break down the opposition.
As f or Guardiola, well, his philosophy has also changed as he always expected it to. Sure, he still loves possession. But the man who famously told his Bayern players that ‘I hate tiki-taka’ has become besotted by the speed at which German f ootball is pl ayed, particularly on the counter-attack.
enrique is certainly prepared for something out of the ordinary from the man he regards as a close friend, saying: ‘ having seen Bayern and knowing Pep, there could well be changes and surprises which can make things complicated for us.
‘I don’t think that Pep will have many doubts about what he will face. he knows the players and he knows how I was as a player. There is only one ball, we will both want to have it, and we will see who is on top and copes best on the pitch.
‘I believe it will be one of the most attractive games that you will be able to see in europe.’
Barca have won six straight games, haven’t conceded a goal in five — and are chasing a Treble. Bayern have been able to ease up in the Bundesliga, with the title secured, but are hurting after seeing their own Treble hopes dashed by old foes Borussia Dortmund.
Much is at stake, then. Yet still it comes back to questions for Leo — and opinions about Pep, Bayern midfielder Xabi Alonso admitting: ‘We are aware this is a special match f or Guardiola because he has experienced everything here as a fan, player and manager.’