Pep Guardiola's angry Bayern Munich dressing room rant ahead of the Manchester City match
A RETROSPECTIVE: Pep Guardiola once took aim at a leak within the Bayern Munich camp while in charge of the German giants, and now, seven years later, he is preparing to take them on.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is preparing to face his former club Bayern Munich in the first leg of a round-of-16 Champions League tie.
The defending champion Premier League champions have enjoyed such emphatic dominance over domestic proceedings since Guardiola took over, but European club football's most prestigious trophy remains elusive. He'll be out to change that once more, and his old outfit will be the first to get in his way in the knockout rounds.
In many ways, it is appropriate that Guardiola will face the Bundesliga giants in the Champions League, as the competition has cast a shadow over his Bayern reign. While at the Allianz Arena, the former Barcelona manager won three league titles, two DFB-Pokals, one super cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup.
Nonetheless, his reign is still derided for failing to accomplish what many believe he was brought in to do: win the Champions League for Bayern.
That being said, Guardiola's time in Munich was marred by more than just a lack of European recognition. There was also his contentious final rant, in which he targeted an unidentified club employee who was leaking inside information to the media.
"What happens in the dressing room usually stays in the dressing room," Guardiola remarked in 2016.
"Anyone who has spoken has struck me. But, since I won't be here next season, it's not my problem, but Bayern's. It's happened numerous times in the last three years.
"It's common for me to talk to my players and staff and share my thoughts, but there are people here who are talking to hurt me."
"Perhaps this person will still be here next season, and clearly they don't realize they're hurting the club and the team, not just me." Because I won't be there, it's the club's problem."
Guardiola, who is normally calm and composed when dealing with the press, had demonstrated that he was fed up with life at Bayern.
Reports of squabbles with the club's medical team over their failure to get key players back to full fitness in the time frame Guardiola desired marred the end of his time at the club.
When you combine this outburst with the disappointment of three consecutive Champions League eliminations, it was best for both parties. Guardiola made the switch from Bayern Munich to Manchester City.
Seven years later, Guardiola has the opportunity to exact vengeance on a Bayern side now led by ex-Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel when City hosts Bayern at the Etihad on Tuesday night.
The race for another league title has received a lot of attention, but this trophy is the one that City wants more than any other.
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