'Pep buys success' - Why Mourinho is greater than Guardiola

Robin Bairner

• 31 May 2023 04:28 CDT
• 4 min read

Jose Mourinho will return to the spotlight he deserves on Wednesday when he leads his Roma side into the UEFA Europa League final against Sevilla.

The 60-year-old Portuguese may have been written off time and again by a media that is distinctly frosty towards him as his long-time rival Pep Guardiola earns plaudits for his achievements at Manchester City.

Indeed, Mourinho and Guardiola have spent the best part of 15 years as rivals for the title as the best manager in the world.

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From the moment that Pep took the Barcelona job in 2008 and cast a spell on the football world with tiki-taka, he squared himself up in opposition against Jose, then of Inter, who was every inch his antithesis. Guardiola’s football was beautiful; Mourinho’s was ugly. Both proved successful as Barca won the 2009 Champions League before the Nerazzurri responded a year later, deposing the title holders along the way.

Since, their reputations have veered in different directions. Guardiola is seen as football’s tactical king, having spearheaded Manchester City’s dominance of the Premier League for the past five years, while Mourinho has gone out of fashion and finds himself at clubs away from the elite bracket, first with Tottenham and now Roma.

Snarky and scowling, the former Porto, Real Madrid and Manchester United boss does not have the same charm he once did when he proclaimed himself “the Special One” when he first took charge of Chelsea in 2004. At times, it feels he is his own worst PR enemy. Not that he cares.

Yet this detracts from his genius. Mourinho, remember, has been named as the coach in UEFA’s Team of the Year on four occasions, Pep only twice, although the Catalan is surely heading towards a hat-trick in the days to come as City fly towards a treble.

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Mourinho's pragmatism vs Pep's perfection

What really sets Mourinho apart, though, is his ability to win with teams of all shapes and sizes.

Even if European football was not monopolised by the big clubs when his Porto team lifted the Champions League in 2004, the size of that achievement remains enormous. As he has been at pains to point out, the only club at which he has not enjoyed a title is Tottenham – and, as he implied, that says more about Spurs than his qualities.

Of course, there’s no point going toe-to-toe with Guardiola when it comes to trophies, but the quality and advantages that the three clubs Pep has coached – Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City – are undeniable. And his ability to construct teams based around his philosophy is remarkable, deservedly seeing him hailed as the most important coaching figure of his generation.

But in order for him to succeed, it appears that he needs these wildly advantageous circumstances, which range from boasting the best midfield and player in history to a club that has the power to outspend its rivals.

For Pep, there is no room for pragmatism; the goal is perfection. This, of course, requires great players, and that requires huge sums of money. During his career, Guardiola has signed 74 players for a fee, spending just shy of €1.8 BILLION in doing so, working out at around €24m per player. Mourinho’s average purchase stands at just €15m – and he did not have the luxury of La Masia to work with at any of his clubs.

Throughout his career, the Portuguese has shown an ability to win with different teams and in different styles. It is a challenge that Guardiola has never had to face.

Would Pep have been able to lead this Roma team into the Europa League final? It’s doubtful. Would Jose win with Manchester City? They would be far uglier than they are now – but you better believe he would.

Mourinho may be outmoded and out of date in many ways, but he remains a winner, and should Roma overcome Sevilla in Budapest, he will send a timely reminder to the world that this is the case.