Top 5 Player turned Coaches of the 21st century

#1 Pep Guardiola

Guardiola is hands down the most influential coach of this century. His attention to detail and his adamancy on possession play is notorious. He is also known to sell off players who don't fit his system, no matter how good the players are.

Guardiola was a Barcelona man all the way. He started his career in the Barca youth system before he became part of the famous Dream Team of Johan Cruyff. He was a deep-lying midfielder and won Barcelona's first Champions League title in 1992. He also won 6 La Liga titles, out of which the first four were back to back.

Injury problems led to Guardiola's effect being diminished at the end of his Barca career as a player, but he was still considered as one of their best midfielders. After short stints in clubs all around the world, Guardiola brought an end to his playing career. His Spain career though was not a successful one. He was only capped 47 times and missed the Euro 1996 after a falling out with the management.

Guardiola unleashed Messi's potential to the world

After retiring, Guardiola took the reigns of Barca's B team. Having been brought up in La Masia himself and played for the club for over a decade, Guardiola knew the Barca way. After just one season he was promoted to the senior team, where Guardiola quickly established his famous ruthless philosophy. He sold many of the old guards like Ronaldinho and Deco, replacing them with the players from his Barca B team and other La Masia graduates. He signed Dani Alves and Gerard Pique, who would go on to serve the club in its most illustrious period.

Guardiola's first season saw Barca win the famous sextuple, the only club to win 6 trophies in a year. Guardiola would go on to take Barca into a whole new level, making Messi the world-class player we know today. Barca won the La Liga three times, the Champions League twice and the Copa del Rey twice.

After four years in Barca, Guardiola went to Bayern Munich. His success continued as he won the Bundesliga title all the years he was there. And usually with many games remaining. Guardiola is currently the manager of Manchester City and has already won the league in his second season, that too with a record number of points. The Citizens' dominance continues this season and it seems it will be a hard task stopping them.

Many describe Guardiola's tactics as tiki-taka. Tiki-Taka is a form of football where short passes and possession is king. But many teams have tried to copy it and failed to achieve to emulate Guardiola's success.

Guardiola's tactics run deeper than tiki-taka. While he prefers the 4-3-3 formation, that is hardly the case when the team plays. The flexibility of his team is the reason why his teams are so successful. While the defense and midfield remain intact during a build-up, the final third is usually free form.

Guardiola is always adamant that keeping the ball is key. Instead of kicking the ball out blindly, he stresses his players to remain patient and look for passes. It is also important for him that his players always aware of their position and are ready to win back the ball whenever the team loses it.

Guardiola's influence in Barcelona helped Spain win the 2010 World Cup

Guardiola's exploits in club level certainly reflected in the international stage. While he was the manager of Barcelona, Spain lifted the World Cup in 2010 and Euro in 2012. The Spanish squad consisted many of the Barca players and the tiki-taka philosophy was very much part of their play.

Similarly, when he was the manager of Bayern Munich, Germany lifted the World Cup. For those who think it might be a lucky coincidence, just take a look at the resurgence of the England National team. While Gareth Southgate's work shouldn't be played down, Pep Guardiola surely has had an effect in players like Raheem Sterling, Delph, Stones, and Walker. And all these players played a pivotal part in helping England reach the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup.

Therefore, there cannot be any doubt that Pep Guardiola has changed the way football is being played. Clubs and national sides all around the world are trying to copy his style, but it is not easy. Pep Guardiola did not achieve his style from copying but through dedication in understanding the opposition and the willingness to adapt accordingly without giving up on his principles.