Page 106 - Pep Guardiola: Another Way of Winning: The Biography

de la Plata in December of that year after reaching the final, was the only honour the team had never
won.
Pep’s anguished words before winning his sixth title in his first year as Barça’s coach can explain
what happened two and a half years later. ‘This is unbearable,’ he privately acknowledged while he

reflected on the fact that people have very short memories in the world of football. It worried him that
more and more was being asked of a group of players that would go down in history as the greatest of
all time.
The rhythm of success had been so harmonious and so phenomenal from Barcelona’s point of view
that it needed a happy ending. ‘Tomorrow something will end that started last year,’ Guardiola
announced. ‘The future is bleak, because surpassing what has been achieved is impossible. We’d be
wrong to make comparisons. What we must do is work so that people continue to be proud of us. It

isn’t the game of our lives, because family are waiting for us at home, nor will it make up for
anything.’
Pep took some of the weight off the pressure the team felt as a result of Barcelona losing the World
Club final in 1992 and in 2006 with Rijkaard, undervaluing the competition on both occasions. But
just before the game started, in the last talk to the team, he announced, in a carefully composed and
convincing statement, that it was close to being the game of their lives: ‘If we lose today, we will still

be the best team in the world. If we win, we will be eternal.’
The game belonged to Estudiantes – the Argentinians denied Barça and scored from their best
chance. But Pedro forced extra time from the penultimate kick of the game. Then, after a brief respite,
it was just a question of waiting for the appearance of Messi, who scored after controlling the ball
with his chest from a cross from Alvés.
Lady Luck was looking out for Pep’s team that season, and they persevered, never stopped running,
and never looked for excuses. And eventually, it happened for them with Iniesta’s goal at Stamford

Bridge and Pedro’s in this final.
It had been eighteen months since Guardiola was named first-team coach. On that December night
in Abu Dhabi, Barcelona had won their sixth title under their new coach: that is, every competition
they had competed for.
While he waited to collect the trophy, in full view of the world’s TV cameras, standing on the
pitch, Pep Guardiola broke down in tears.

Manel Estiarte looked on as his friend’s body trembled before he burst into tears. Dani Alvés was the

first to approach the coach to give him a hug. Pep regained his composure for a few seconds. He took
a few steps back and found himself alone once again. He hid his face with his hands and let
everything out. He couldn’t stop crying. He trembled; his shoulders yo-yoed up and down like a
child’s. Henry embraced him, smiling in disbelief. His friend Guillermo Amor, commentating for
Spanish television, was moved when he saw him: ‘He really lives football, he’s trained for it,’ he
repeated, his voice breaking. Ibrahimović took over from Henry and joked with his coach. And at that
moment Pep emerged from his trance as the officials slowly took over: the awards ceremony was

about to begin.
Pep’s sister Francesca cried herself as she watch him break down. ‘It’s really moving, it really
gets you,’ she said when she watched the footage again weeks later. Ramón Besa, journalist and
friend, understands that Pep is ‘so transparent that he does everything on the pitch: there’s no cheats
or tricks. He is extremely sensitive.’ His friend David Trueba points out that ‘victory is usually