Guardiola happy to be on par with Ferguson

Pep Guardiola is proud to become the second manager in England after Alex Ferguson to lead a club to the treble.

After helping Man City win the Champions League for the first time, Guardiola revealed that he received a congratulatory message from the former Man Utd boss the following morning. "I was emotional when I received the message from Ferguson," Guardiola said. "Winning the treble is very difficult and I am happy to be equal to him. But the fact that we won the treble this season was an inevitable scenario."

Guardiola celebrates his third Champions League title in his career, after the Champions League final on the evening of June 10, 2023 at Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey. Photo: Reuters

Ferguson was the first manager to win the treble with an English club, winning the Champions League, FA Cup and Premier League with Man Utd in 1999. Ferguson's side lost the Champions League final twice, in 2009 and 2011, both to Guardiola's Barca. However, Guardiola and Ferguson have remained in regular contact since then.

Guardiola explained that the Champions League is a difficult competition and that teams need luck to win it. "This competition is like tossing a coin and this time it was Man City's turn," the Spaniard added. "We knew it was going to be difficult and the players were nervous in the first half. It was a matter of patience and luck, like Ederson's saves at the end."

Guardiola is the first coach in history to lead a team to the treble twice, with Barca in 2009 and Man City in 2023. Excluding the Super Cup, Guardiola has won 12 titles with Man City. In terms of major titles with English clubs, the 52-year-old coach is only behind Ferguson with 26 titles and Bob Paisley with 13.

Guardiola added that it was now time for him and his City players to celebrate after a historic season. "I can't wait to lift all three trophies on the bus through the streets of Manchester," he said. "I'm tired, relieved and satisfied. I don't want to think about next season because we'll start from zero."

Man City will hold a parade to celebrate the second cup on June 12, starting at 11:30 p.m., Hanoi time.

Hoang An

Source link: https://vnexpress.net/guardiola-hanh-phuc-vi-sanh-ngang-ferguson-4616283.html