Pep Guardiola has earned plaudits for his Tiki Taka style of football from several pundits and has faced criticism for it as well. The former Spanish midfielder was in charge of Barcelona’s most successful era in their history as he won the treble with the Catalan giants.
He then moved to Bayern Munich and established a similar style of football with continued success. He hasn’t been able to win the UEFA Champions League with the Bavarians but is on course for his third consecutive Bundesliga title.
But Giovanni Trapattoni Ireland’s former manager doesn’t agree with Pep Guardiola’s style of play. The Italian finds the pace of Guardiola’s game too slow for his liking. “What I see in world football at the moment is true particularly for Bayern.”
The idea of possession football is something the experienced manager has found flawed saying, ”For me there's too much possession. Tick, tack, tick, tack. Tuck, tuck, tuck. To and fro. With too little return. And after 27 minutes they shoot on the goal for the first time - that's inefficient.”
Trapattoni is considered one of the greatest managers in Serie A and is currently not working after his leaving his last job as the head coach of the Republic of Ireland. The highly experienced manager won six Serie A titles between 1976 and 1986 and also won the complete set of European trophies during his time as manager of Juventus.
He also managed Bayern Munich in the late 1990’s but did not have a very successful spell there. Trapattoni believes in a more attacking and fast-paced style of football and doesn't believe in keeping the ball for long periods without creating too many chances
"You have to attack in a more determined manner. There is a goal in the middle – when the midfielders pass the ball backwards, 70 metres away from that goal, I don't like it. For me it's too much” said the manager.
"There was a Swedish coach at AC Milan 30 years ago, Nils Liedholm. He started with the idea of permanent possession. But football is jab jab. Shoot and score. The thing with possession is not new - with Pep it's extreme” he added.
Guardiola is set to leave Germany come end of the season after he signed a three-year deal to take over from Manuel Pellegrini at Manchester City. With Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and possibly Jose Mourinho all managing in England next season, it’s exciting times ahead for the Premier League.
