Opinion – PVC: Guardiola scales and European newspapers don’t understand

Guardiola is such a special coach that it becomes increasingly difficult to understand that his tactical system has already changed. When you realize it, it’s changed again. The match against Chelsea, on Thursday (5), showed how the most different newspapers in the world do not understand, or at least cannot convey, that Pep has returned to WM permanently. His attack is with three defenders, two midfielders and five forwards. Ever.

In the victory over Chelsea, in London, he used Walker as a defender on the right, the Dutchman Aké on the left and Stones as a libero. Rodri made the defensive pendulum, with Bernardo Silva at his side. In attack, João Cancelo on the right, Foden on the left, De Bruyne, Haaland and Gundogan.

Five positioned as forwards.

No newspaper in Europe noticed.

L’Equipe gave the lineup, in its edition of the following day, in a 4-2-3-1, with João Cancelo on the left side. The Portuguese played wide on the right. La Gazzetta dello Sport he set up City using the same tactical system, with João Cancelo at right-back and Rodri at quarter-back.

No, it wasn’t like that.

Defending, City made two lines of four.

It’s not important for you to understand how Guardiola’s team plays. For the Catalan coach, better that nobody understands. The fact is that he returns to WM, the system created by the Scotsman Herbert Chapman, after the change in the offside law, in 1925, with three defenders, two midfielders, two midfielders and three forwards. In practice, a 3-2-5. It’s what Guardiola reinvents.

As his biographer, Martí Perarnau, football’s greatest reinventor of ideas, says.

It is always imprecise to define when and how a tactical system was born – or reborn. Santos, from Pelé, is used with three defenders, but played in the 4-2-4. Gilmar, Lima, Mauro and Dalvo are recited; Zito and Calvet; Dorval, Mengalvio, Coutinho, Pele and Pepe. “We played 4-2-4,” says Pepe. It means that the press did not notice what the field showed and Pepe’s testimony guarantees: Gilmar, Lima, Mauro, Calvet and Dalmo; Zito and Mengálvio; Dorval, Coutinho, Pele and Pepe.

In practice, it was like that. Newspapers, to this day, cannot show this.

Paulo César Carpegiani already told this columnist that he used Flamengo, in 1981, in a 4-2-3-1, when nobody dared design this system. Raul, Leandro, Marinho, Mozer and Junior; Andrade, Adílio and Zico; Tita, Nunes and Lico were, at times, Raul, Nei Dias, Marinho, Mozer and Júnior; Andrade and Leandro; Lico, Zico and Adílio; Nunes.

Pep has already said that it will be difficult to win the third English championship, because Arsenal are showing signs of being able to reach 100 points in the season. In 17 matches, he has 44 points and will need to maintain the level, to reach the centenary score that only Guardiola reached, in 2018, for City.

Mikel Arteta, Arsenal’s current coach, was Guardiola’s assistant at Manchester City and uses the same system, without the same shine, nor as talented players. When they were undefeated champions, in 2004, Arsenal reached 90. If you do just that, City will overwhelm you. Nobody in the world is as creative as Guardiola.

If he doesn’t win the Premier League, that’s one more reason to think he’ll be in the Champions League final on June 10 in Istanbul.

Useless

It is difficult to understand why Corinthians insisted on disclosing their proposal for Cristiano Ronaldo. Just to show that he can have an ambition that Vítor Pereira’s testimony makes him think he cannot have. It is clear that the Portuguese coach believes he has a better chance of being champion in Gávea than in Parque São Jorge.

decisive week

This week will be decisive for the CBF to look for its new coach. For now, there have been searches and public refusals, with no information on who was probed and rejected coming to Brazil. You already know that Guardiola, Ancelotti and Klopp, the best coaches in the world, will not work in Barra da Tijuca, in the cycle of the next Cup.