Perhaps it’s simply the nature of social media that there will always be those who want to be contrary. Perhaps Twitter and Facebook have simply given vent to a streak of snideness that has always underlain humanity. But there remains something very odd about the tide of invective against Pep Guardiola.

The argument is familiar; everything has been handed to him on a silver platter. The five league titles he’s won in his six full season in management—and the sixth he’s about to win—have been almost inevitable. If he really wanted to prove himself, he would eschew the game’s giants and drop down a level.

Let’s take that last point first, the idea that Guardiola somehow has a duty to handicap himself (which in itself is an admission of his quality). Of who else do we demand this? Yes, Lionel Messi/Cristiano Ronaldo/Neymar/Luis Suarez is pretty good, but, for me, he needs to win the league with Sunderland before he can really be considered a great. Yes, Tom Hanks is a great actor, but could he do it in a school nativity play? That Hilary Mantel is a decent writer, but could she churn out three on-the-whistle match reports for different outlets? Do we dismiss Bob Paisley’s three European Cups at Liverpool just because he didn’t go off to try his hand at Brighton and Hove Albion?

The argument also misses a fundamental point about management, which is that managing a small team on a budget and trying to keep them up requires a different skill set to competing with a giant in the Champions League. As the director of a Premier League side once put it to me when suggesting his club should have sacked their manager as soon as they got promoted: You don’t ask a guy who runs a corner shop to run a multinational.

The expectations are different, the management of egos is different, the style of football is different. Perhaps Guardiola would be a good manager of Norwich City or Swansea City, perhaps not. The truth is it doesn’t really matter. He is an elite-level manager and so should be judged on what he does with elite-level teams and, on that scale, he scores extremely well.

It’s easy to forget now what a mess Barcelona were in when Guardiola was appointed in 2008. They were a tired, ill-disciplined squad. They hadn’t won the league for two years. In Frank Rijkaard’s final season, they finished third, behind Villarreal and fully 18 points adrift of champions Real Madrid.

There’s an assumption now that Lionel Messi’s rise was inevitable, that whoever was in charge, the Argentinian would have shrugged off the chrysalis and emerged as the one of the greatest players in the world. But Messi in 2007-08, although he scored 10 goals in 23 league appearances, was often injured. 

Messi was close friends with Ronaldinho. In Guillem Balague’s biography, Pep Guardiola: Another Way of Winning, there are stories of the concerns that he’d begun to be distracted by socialising with the Brazilian. Guardiola acted quickly, offloading Ronaldinho, Deco and Edmilson. The Barcelona boss knew the style of play he wanted and immediately began to shape the squad to play it. 

It’s true that he was fortunate to have the talents of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Messi emerging, but he also shaped them. He brought Sergio Busquets into the side to provide a platform for the tight, technical football. He moved Javier Mascherano into the back four to improve the passing quality of the side. That was a radical move, one that could easily have gone wrong. Equally, moving Messi from the flank to operate as a false nine and switching Samuel Eto’o to the flank was something revolutionary.

What looks obvious in retrospect was startling at the time. Within a year, Barca had won the league, the cup, the Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup, the Spanish Super Cup and the UEFA Super Cup. And they’d done it playing extraordinary football.

However good a side is, three league titles, two cups and two Champions Leagues in four years is astonishing. And had it not been for an Icelandic volcano forcing Barca to travel to Italy by coach for the first leg of their semi-final in 2011, and for a defensive performance of extraordinary discipline from Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan in the second leg, Barca might have ended up with three successive Champions Leagues.

No side has dominated European football in the Champions League era as Barca did between 2009 and 2011. To say it was easy for Guardiola because he had the best team is ludicrous; they were the best team because of him.

Bayern Munich, admittedly, is a different issue. The side he inherited had just won a treble. They were by some distance the best side in Germany and, given their resources—the latest Deloitte report showed their revenues for 2014-15 were 69 per cent higher than Borussia Dortmund, the next-richest side—they have a huge advantage over the rest.

The 19th edition of the Deloitte #Football Money League is available here: https://t.co/x1m0dLiPRI #clubs #Deloitte http://pic.twitter.com/97gAfGB75e

— The ICSS (@The_ICSS) February 3, 2016

In those circumstances, winning the league title is expected. But that doesn’t mean it’s a given, and Guradiola has delivered.

And then there’s the style of football. This hasn’t been a case of just sitting on the driver’s seat while the train continues on the same tracks as before. Guardiola has had Bayern play some of the most tactically revolutionary football the Bundesliga has known.

Of course, a failure to win another Champions League—so far—is a disappointment, but semi-final defeats to sides who went on to win the tournament is hardly a disgrace.

Ten major trophies in six years is a stunning record; the seventh season will almost certainly yield another Bundesliga, while Bayern are in the quarter-final of the DFB-Pokal and the last 16 of the Champions League.

The idea that Manchester City is some sort of sinecure is also preposterous. They probably do have the greatest resources of any Premier League club, but they only have the second highest revenues. And the Premier League is far more competitive than either Spain on Germany: five of the richest nine clubs in the world play in it, 17 of the richest 30.

Guardiola will have to modify his approach. He will have to work out how to manage his intensity and the intensity he demands of his team over a relentless season in which there will be very few easy weeks, and two cup competitions to deal with. And he will have to work out how to achieve European success with a team that has never reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League.

To talk of managing elite clubs as being easier than managing a York City or even a Crystal Palace is to miss the point. It’s just different. And Guardiola’s record at the level at which he has managed is without equal on the time he’s been doing the job. He’s a great coach, but Manchester City is a great challenge.

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Liverpool reportedly had a bid rejected for Inter Milan forward Mauro Icardi in the final knockings of the transfer window. 

According to Corriere della Sera (h/t the Daily Mirror) the Reds made the bid for the Argentine on Monday before the deadline passed. Icardi has been left out of the Inter side for the last couple of matches by manager Roberto Mancini, sparking rumours about a possible move.

Although the 22-year-old may not be in favour at the San Siro currently, there is no denying his talent. Here’s a look at why he’s rated as one of the most exciting attacking players on the continent:

This term he’s netted eight goals in 19 Serie A appearances. The Nerazzurri star is a very technical forward, blessed with brilliant link-up skills, clever movement and, when given chances, an extremely composed head in front of goal. They’re qualities Liverpool lack at the point of the attack.

However, Sport Witness feel as though reports suggesting Icardi could be available for a knockdown fee are likely wide of the mark:

Indeed, while Icardi has been out of the side recently, he remains a key figure at Inter. He may not be the fastest, tallest or strongest forward around, but with their star striker in the side the San Siro club always preserve a much greater goal threat.

Liverpool decided not to liven up their attacking talent in the midseason window, and in their previous outing, a 2-0 defeat to Leicester City on Tuesday night, Jurgen Klopp’s side once again lined up without an orthodox centre-forward. It’s an area they will definitely need to address next season, though.

One player who may seek to give this side a jolt in 2016-17 is Lazar Markovic, who is on loan at Fenerbahce this term. According to the Serbian winger, the decision to ship him out on loan is due to a breakdown in relationship with former manager Brendan Rodgers.

“I had no problem with Rodgers and we had a bond until, for some reason that remains a mystery to me, he changed.” Markovic told Turkish website Fanatic (h/t Rory Brigstock-Barron of the MailOnline). “He stopped playing me and then at the start of the season he didn’t even include me in the squad. And nobody explained to me what was going on or what his plans were, so I decided to leave.”

Markovic has been a vibrant presence for Fenerbahce this term. Here is a look at some of his best moments since making the loan switch:

As noted by Bleacher Report’s Karl Matchett, it seems as though Liverpool supporters are keen to give the former Benfica man another chance:

One player who Liverpool supporters will definitely want their club to pursue at the end of the season is Alex Teixeira.

However, according to Calciomercato (h/t Will Giles of Metro), the Brazilian is a target for Chinese Super League side Jiangsu Suning, who are willing to pay £38 million to sign him from Shakhtar Donetsk. As reported by James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo, it’s an amount the Reds decided not to meet, and the player himself is said to be willing to wait until the summer to sort his future.

He’d certainly add the clinical edge in front of goal Liverpool need. As we can see here courtesy of Sport Witness’ Tom Coast, Teixeira’s goalscoring has been extremely impressive:

Although clubs in the Chinese Super League have flexed their muscles in the window as of late, it’d be a huge surprise to see Teixeira move to the division.

He’s on the cusp of the peak years of his career, after all, and will be keen to enjoy that spell with an established elite club in Europe. Liverpool, among others you suspect, would be willing to give him that chance.

Icardi could potentially be a solution to the Reds’ woes at centre-forward, although he’d be a costly signing in the summer. Christian Benteke, Daniel Sturridge, Divock Origi and Danny Ings all have question marks over them and Klopp will want a forward who can marry industry and incision at Anfield.

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AC Milan looks to capitalize on the momentum produced by their 3-0 win over Inter Milan as they travel to Sicily to take on Palermo.

Date: Wednesday, February 3

Time: 8:45 local time, 7:45 GMT, 2:45 EST

Venue: Stadio Renzo Barbera, Palermo

TV Info: No live feeds

Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect (US)

Palermo has been synonymous with instability for as long as Maurizio Zamparini has been their owner.  

Since buying the club in 2002, when it was still in Serie B, the eccentric president has changed managers a whopping 29 times.  One man, Serse Cosmi, was fired after only four games in charge in 2011 when his team was crushed 4-0 by Catania in the Derby della Sicilia.

The game of “musical managers” reached its nadir in 2012-13, when there were five individual coaching tenures involving three different men.  Not surprisingly, they were relegated that season for the first time since they had reached the top flight in 2004.

Their success in the two years since—they won Serie B to get right back into Serie A and a comfortable 11th-place finish in their first season back—was due largely to a rare bit of stability in the manager’s office.  Giuseppe Iachini, who replaced Gennaro Gattuso after only two months of that Serie B season, was a steadying influence.  He utilized his team well and had their complete respect.

But after Palermo won only four of this season’s first 12 games, Zamparini‘s trigger finger began to itch, and Iachini was out, replaced by Davide Ballardini.  The move was immediately rejected by the players.  Star forward Franco Vazquez called it an “injustice” on Twitter (h/t Football Italia), and Enzo Maresca was similarly criticial in a Facebook post (h/t Football Italia).

Eventually the relationship between Ballardini and the team grew so toxic that goalkeeper and captain Stefano Sorrentino told reporters after their January 10 win over Hellas Verona (h/t Football Italia) that the manager didn’t interact with the team at all during the game.  

Giovanni Tedesco has since taken Ballardini‘s place.

As if all these distractions aren’t enough, Palermo has become the target of Operation Offside, a large-scale tax-evasion scandal involving a number of Serie A and Serie B clubs and personnel.

Perilously close to the relegation battle, Palermo will be relying on Vazquez to trigger their attack and on 22-year-old center-back Edoardo Goldaniga to keep their line tight.

On the other hand, Milan will be riding a huge wave.  After squeaking by Alessandria in the first leg of the semifinal of the Coppa Italia last Tuesday, they came home to the San Siro for the Derby della Madonnina against archrivals Inter.

After an exciting first half, Alex got a head to a powerful cross from Keisuke Honda to give the Rossoneri a late 1-0 lead going into the break.  The game was still in the balance until the final 20 minutes, when Inter’s Mauro Icardi clanked a penalty off the post and Carlos Bacca and M’Baye Niang scored in quick succession to put the 3-0 win to bed.

The Rossoneri weren’t nearly as dominant as that scoreline suggests, but for once they took their chances to kill off the game with cool efficiency, and they capitalized on Inter’s lack of creativity at the other end.

Coach Sinisa Mihajlovic has been under pressure himself this season, but he has managed to keep his seat so far, and this season has been a general improvement over last year under Filippo Inzaghi.  

Now only two points behind AS Roma for a place in the top five, if Milan can take the momentum from their biggest win of the year and turn it into a genuine run, they could even close the six-point gap between themselves and the final Champions League place.

The first meeting between these two this year on September 19 was an exciting affair.  Milan went ahead twice through goals by Bacca and Giacomo Bonaventura, but the Rosaneri wouldn’t be finished off.  Twice Oscar Hiljemark equalized before Bacca‘s second goal of the game provided the difference 15 minutes from time.

Form Lines

 *Coppa Italia

Probable Lineups

Unavailable

Palermo: none

Milan: Out: GK Diego Lopez (knee), CB Rodrigo Ely (foot).  Questionable: FW Luiz Adriano, who could be set for a move to China, per Football Italia.

Key Players

Palermo’s attack starts and ends with Vazquez.

The Argentina-born Italy international hasn’t been the goalscoring threat that he was a year ago, when he potted 10 strikes to go along with his 10 assists.  That decrease, though, is not so much a reflection on his abilities as on the fact he no longer has Paulo Dybala to play off of.

With his old running mate now at Juventus, defenses have been able to collapse on him in the absence of a second option of similar quality.  He’s on pace to at least equal his assist numbers, but one of his teammates has to step up to help him get the attack going.  

If someone turns into a big enough threat that he starts requiring attention, it will be a boon for Palermo’s most dangerous man.

The creator on the other side is Giacomo Bonaventura.

The only man who has really shown the ability to create for Milan this season, Bonaventura has been exceptional, scoring five goals and notching seven assists.  His play has been instrumental in the club’s attempt to climb back into Italy’s elite.

Even more impressive is that that success has come from several different places.  The 26-year-old has played on the left wing in a 4-3-3, left midfield in a 4-4-2 and as trequartista in a 4-3-1-2.  

For some players all that shuffling would be confusing, but Bonaventura hasn’t once allowed his form to falter.

Good in front of goal, one-on-one on the dribble and deadly as a set-piece threat, knowing where Bonaventura is at all times is vital in stopping Milan from creating chances.

Key Matchup

Goldaniga didn’t play in the first game between these two clubs, but he’s been a regular starter since the end of November and is quietly becoming one of Serie A’s better young defenders.

Particularly adept at intercepting balls (WhoScored.com clocks him at 2.8 per match), Goldaniga is going to have a task on his hands when he goes up against Milan’s Carlos Bacca.

Bacca has been nothing short of fantastic this season.  In his debut season in one of the most difficult leagues in the world to score in, he’s already struck 11 times, and he would have a lot more if his team had managed to get him more service.

According to WhoScored, Bacca is averaging only 1.8 shots per game.  Squawka has tallied that up to 30 shots in 22 games, excluding blocked efforts.  

In order to have as good a year as Bacca has had with that kind of service you have to hit the target consistently, and that’s exactly what the Colombian has done.  He’s found the target on 21 of those 30 shots—a whopping 70 percent.

Compare that to scoring leader Gonzalo Higuain, who Squawka clocks as hitting the target 53 percent of the time, and you wonder how many times Bacca would score if he had more opportunities.

Bacca‘s game is based on off-ball movement.  He finds space and then exploits it.  Goldaniga is going to have to limit that space as much as possible and use his feel for angles to keep passes from getting through to him.  

If he can do that, Milan will have to rely on their lesser attackers to find their goals—and it will be easier for Palermo to snag a point.

Odds (via Odds Shark)

Palermo win: 16-5

Milan win: 20-23

Draw: 13-5

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Inter Milan will reportedly let their captain and star striker Mauro Icardi leave for just £19 million following a bust-up with manager Roberto Mancini—a price Liverpool are prepared to pay.  

According to Italian outlet Sport Mediaset (h/t Metro‘s George Bellshaw), Liverpool “are admirers of the 22-year-old and are ready to meet Inter Milan’s asking price.”

The Reds have scored just 30 goals in the Premier League this season, with big-money summer signing Christian Benteke struggling to fit in at Anfield, so more firepower would be a huge boost to their hopes of finishing in the Champions League places.

A prolific striker such as Icardi could be the answer to Liverpool’s problems. The Argentinian has scored eight goals and assisted on one in 19 Serie A appearances this term, and last season, he was the division’s joint-top scorer with 22, per football writer James Horncastle:

Indeed, the youngster was in incredible and ruthless form:

Unsurprisingly, Italian football writer Adam Digby believes Icardi is the most clinical finisher in Italy’s top tier:

Mancini has a history of allowing players to depart following a personal clash with them, such as with Mario Balotelli at Manchester City, but Icardi is a much more key player for Inter than Balotelli was for City so it would still be a huge surprise if they let him go for such a relatively low fee in the middle of the season.

Further, according to Sky Sports (h/t Football Italia) the hitman will be staying put:

Liverpool are also reportedly targeting one of Italy’s other top young striking talents, as Calciomercato (h/t Sam Hall of the Independent) reported the Reds “lead the race” to sign Juventus star Alvaro Morata.

The Spaniard has accrued seven goals and five assists in all competitions this season, putting him on target to at least equal last season’s tallies of 15 and seven, respectively.

The 23-year-old has outstanding potential, but that is precisely why, as Hall noted, the Bianconeri do not wish to part with him. If Liverpool hope to land a goalscorer before the end of the deadline, they’ll likely have to look elsewhere.

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When Associazione Calcio Milan are at their best, so is football.

It feels as if centuries have passed since AC Milan‘s prestigious red-and-black stripes were relevant; winning Serie A in 2010/11, their five-year decline (marginal at first, then dramatic) has coincided with Juventus‘ rise to prominence and, in turn, something of an economic nightmare at the San Siro. 

Only Real Madrid (10) have more European Cup/Champions League crowns than Milan’s seven, but recent years have made that history a stark reminder of how far they have fallen, not necessarily a beacon of hope.

Despite their present regression, though, the Rossoneri could be in the midst of a slight resurgence.

After losing four of their opening seven matches this season, manager Sinisa Mihajlovic has rebounded. In Milan’s last 15 Serie A fixtures, they have lost just two—both 1-0 losses to Juventus and Bologna. In 19th place after the first match, the former superclub are now sixth, and six points from Champions league qualification (just two from the Europa League).

Napoli and Juventus are in a competition for the Scudetto all their own, but the next four cubs (Fiorentina, Inter Milan, AS Roma and AC Milan) are playing a venerable game of musical chairs for the last Champions League place.

Fiorentina, Inter and Roma have led Serie A during this campaign for a collective of 14 matchdays, but they were either overtaken by the top two or simply imploded.

Barring a rampant Juve, Milan are arguably Italy’s in-form club, meaning the misery of others could lead to their fortune.

For nearly three seasons that formula has been reversed—other clubs have used Milan’s valley against them. Football, however, is a cyclical sport, so it stands to reason the San Siro‘s red half will return, many just weren’t expecting 2015/16 to be the season.

Handling Roberto Mancini’s Inter 3-0 in the Milan derby, Mihajlovic‘s men dismantled their in-town rivals with relative ease.

An Alex header, Carlos Bacca volley and M’Baye Niang finish—combined with a competent defensive performance—displayed the club’s growth since the season opener. The 3-0 result was Milan’s best overall performance in 2015/16, and it should foster confidence moving forward.

Milan’s next three league fixtures—the latter two at home—come against the current 14th (Palermo), 15th (Udinese) and 16th (Genoa) sides in the division. Nine points before their trip to Naples on 21 February would likely have the Rossoneri already in the Europa League places, with Napoli their largest test since losing to Juve on 21 November.

If the current pattern persists over the next three months, and Milan find themselves in the top three, the scope of world football will shift.

A massive club with staying power—and supposedly using their finances in a more responsible fashion—2016 might be the improbable, yet welcome, year Milan return to the precipice of European prominence.

Boasting legendary names (too many to list) from eras past, the current edition cannot compete with their former firepower, nor silverware output, but the carrot of Champions League football tends to attract world-class names who can start the process of continental domination.

If Mihajlovic gets the Rossoneri into the Champions League, the rest will take care of itself (provided ownership stewards the club responsibly).

AC Milan’s 3-0 trouncing of Inter is comforting in that regard, but there is still a mountain of food left to eat from this particular plate: namely 16 Serie A fixtures and 48 possible points.

Follow @danieltiluk

*Stats via WhoScored.com; transfer fees via Soccerbase where not noted.

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As Juventus took on Chievo this weekend, they were blessed to have a number of players deliver excellent performances. From Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata in attack through the midfield influence of Sami Khedira and Claudio Marchisio, it was a superb team display that led to the comprehensive 4-0 victory.

The defence went practically untested throughout, but every other department of Massimiliano Allegri’s team functioned perfectly, with the coach once again able to rest and rotate his squad in order to cope with a congested fixture list.

Making no fewer than five changes to the side which won their Coppa Italia semi-final clash with Inter Milan at a canter, it was one of the men who featured in that first leg who was arguably the team’s most influential player against Chievo.

From the opening minute, Paul Pogba played with an energy and determination that had been missing in recent weeks, looking much sharper at the Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi and repeatedly opening up the Veronese side.

Indeed, their overwhelmed opponents had no answer to Juventus in general, but Pogba ran riot in the middle of the pitch, breaking up attacks before launching the Bianconeri on their way with his incredible blend of pace, power and technical ability.

Chievo simply could not cope with the 22-year-old, and—even just looking at the raw statistics—his contribution to the win was staggering.

The graphic in the tweet below showcases the breadth of Pogba’s performance, and breaking it down into various categories highlights just how complete a display he turned in.

He grabbed the headlines with a goal and an assist, but he also connected with 62 of his 70 pass attempts (88.6 percent), which is 15 successful passes more than his usual average, according to WhoScored.com.

As can been seen below after some great work from Stephan Lichtsteiner, Pogba’s awareness to find the on-rushing Alex Sandro for Juve’s third goal was excellent, knowing the Brazilian was arriving and managing to get him the ball despite close attention.

Also completing four of the six take-ons he tried, the Chievo defence was often left chasing shadows, quite the contrast to Pogba’s own defensive effort. Over the course of the game, the aforementioned graphic shows he won three tackles, two aerial duels while making one interception and 10 ball recoveries.

Again that is a markedly improved contribution to the one he normally makes, with figures from WhoScored showing Pogba is averaging just 1.8 tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game thus far in 2015/16.

In an unsurprising piece of analysis, Allegri asked for even more from the France international and others, telling reporters at his post-match press conference that they could have won by an even wider margin.

“There’s room for improvement both on an individual and collective level, whether physically or mentally,” the Juve boss said. “Pogba’s final effort on goal is a case in point, when he struck the crossbar by hitting the ball too hard. Instead, he might have opted to place his shot to better effect.”

That effort can be seen above and, despite now having added six goals and seven assists in all competitions, it must be noted that Pogba took no fewer than nine shots against Chievo, per WhoScored.

It is an area of his game he can certainly put more effort into in the coming weeks, but the frightening thing for opponents is that Pogba is almost certain to do so, after discussing the club’s work ethic in an interview with La Stampa last month.

“People ought to know that it is not easy at Juve,” the Frenchman said (h/t Football Italia). “There is a culture of work that is different to anything else abroad.”

Whether that is true or not, the presence of talents such as Pogba means his team are certainly a different class to their domestic opponents, as he proved against Chievo.

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AC Milan claimed bragging rights over city rivals Inter Milan with a resounding 3-0 triumph in Sunday’s Derby della Madonnina.

The Rossoneri avenged a 1-0 loss at the hands of the same opponents on Sept. 13, 2015, extending their unbeaten run in all competitions to six games in the process.

A header from Alex broke the deadlock after 35 minutes, but the defender looked to have turned from hero to villain when he gave away a penalty in the second half.

However, forward Mauro Icardi—who had started the game on the bench—saw his spot-kick kept out by a post. Just three minutes later, AC Milan doubled their lead when striker Carlos Bacca converted M’Baye Niang‘s cross.

Niang turned from provider to scorer for the game’s third goal, the forward finding the net at the second attempt after Inter goalkeeper Samir Handanovic had saved his initial effort.

The result still leaves AC Milan in sixth spot in the table, although they are now just five points behind their fourth-placed opponents.

Here, Bleacher Report has picked out the winners and losers from what turned out to be a one-sided derby.

Begin Slideshow

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