The former Manchester United manager has warned Pep Guardiola that he can’t expect immediate success when he takes over at Manchester City next season. The Scotsman, who won 13 league titles in 26 years with Manchester United, told Sky Sports that Guardiola could initially struggle in the Premier League due to the difficulties of coaching in England.
But Ferguson ultimately backed Guardiola for long-term success, praising him for his “fantastic work ethic”.
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“Without question Pep has got a fantastic work ethic about him, he demands that from all of his training sessions,” he said.
“Anyone who thinks they’re not going to work hard at City won’t last long, he has got great coaching ability, there is no doubt about that. Man City have made a real coup in getting him but Pep won’t find it easy, English football is not easy.
“Every foreign coach that has come to England will tell you that. Arsene Wenger was talking about that a few months after coming and even Jose Mourinho was.
“Pep will be a success but I don’t think he’ll ever replicate what he did at Barcelona because that was a high standard, they were the best.”
Guardiola should also consider other clubs’ strategies: Sir Alex
Ferguson went on to compare Guardiola’s takeover of City to Mourinho’s initial appointment at Chelsea, suggesting Guardiola will need to “ask what the big clubs are going to do.” Mourinho and Ferguson had a widely publicised rivalry when Mourinho first arrived at Chelsea in 2004, with the Portuguese dethroning Manchester United by winning the Premier League during his first season in charge.
Mourinho again won the league the following year, and just as it appeared Mourinho’s Chelsea would start a period of dominance, Ferguson’s Manchester United recaptured the title for the next three seasons.
“If you take my time at United, when Chelsea and Jose came on the scene, in the first two years they had quick starts, so I had to accept that challenge,” he said.
“That’s what you have to do when you’re a big club. Arsenal, Liverpool and the other clubs have to accept the challenge when they are not good enough. They’ll have their own ambitions and will be desperate to win the league next season as much as City, so there is not a guarantee they can win the league.
“That’s the beauty of our league. Arsenal, City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham will want to do something and now, of course, Leicester City are there. Who’s to say they can’t win it next season?”
Having having lost to Guardiola's Barcelona in the Champions League finals of 2009 and 2011, Ferguson previously revealed in his book “Leading” that he approached Guardiola in 2012 about succeeding him as Manchester United boss, before eventually settling for David Moyes due to Guardiola’s preferred destination of Bayern Munich.
As Guardiola looks to win his third consecutive Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich this season, we expect the Spaniard will be listening intently to what Ferguson has to say considering the Scotsman’s previous dominance of the Premier League.
