Has Pep Guardiola made football boring?

Welcome to The Athletic FC's KZbin channel, where best-in-class journalism meets video.
The Premier League heavyweight title clash between Pep Guardiola's Manchester City and Mikel Arteta's Arsenal ended in a tense 0-0 draw at the Etihad.
This has fans asking the question: Has Pep Guardiola made football boring?
Joe Devine and Jon Mackenzie are joined by Duncan Alexander, Senior Editor for The Athletic, to investigate what "boringness" even is.
This is The Athletic's Week in Football.
#mancity #premierleague #pepguardiola
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:51 What do we mean by "boring"?
03:27 A history of boring with Pep Guardiola
07:50 What is Positional Play?
10:41 Why are Man City boring?
13:38 Tactical Fouls
17:05 Has football always been boring?
19:42 Will Positional Play make football always be boring?
21:30 Xabi Alonso: Positional Play Rulebreaker
25:25 What about Jurgen Klopp?
27:55 Do you need to win the "Big Games" to win the league?
28:59 Up and Coming Coaches
30:21 Which Premier League team has been fouled the most?
32:18 What's football for?
32:32 Does football need to be entertaining for neutrals?
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Music sourced from Epidemic Sound
Additional footage sourced from AP Newsroom

[@user-fs8fi2jl6z]

Has the athletic made tifo boring?

[@hopsky]

Yesss

[@v1.249]

Yes 😅 but you can see the old ways break through for small snippets from time to time like at the start of this video. I do miss the Tifo IRL style though.

[@voidoflife7058]

But is it still interesting regardless

[@mattegan3439]

I do miss the discussions about Hobbits and Goblins.

[@userjim83]

Alex to John is the biggest downgrade since Moyes replaced Ferguson

[@pesxbarca]

WE NEED TIFO FOOTBALL IRL BACK

[@gazbo3774]

You can do it just once a month!

[@bigshackfan9786]

Fr where did it go

[@T.E.S.S.]

@@bigshackfan9786 you're watching it

[@jagonchichon590]

No, we need Joe Divine/Devine back

[@chesterhawkins4660]

Tifo IRL was the most boring aspect of the channel in my opinion

[@Taidgh17]

Imagine this, but as a podcast

[@Fernadogcv]

Hahahahaha yeah wouldn't that be great ?

[@Archminister69]

It’s pretty simple when you think about, pep likes to control and hates unpredictability which makes the game less chaotic and more predictable

[@robovac3557]

That's pretty well explained.

[@IamMalkavian]

yep ,its very " safe " football , limiting risk taking in attack helps limit risks faced in defending. hence why it can be seen as not overly exciting football

[@lorenzomartinez8543]

It goes without saying that, in a game where luck plays a huge part, this is a sensible strategy for a guy whose team often has the talent edge

[@maccy4829]

So yes

[@thierryhenry674]

Boring means Dyche, Mourinho, Allardyce, Benitez, Pulis, Conte and Moyes. Defensive direct simple football with no tactical complexity. Preferring physicality, athleticism, hardwork and passion, over skills, technicality, teamwork and flair.

[@pranaychaturvedi7311]

Can’t Tifo adopt a “positional play” approach where Joe Devine and the crew end up on a podcast?

[@SalemMJ]

I’m a simple man, I see Joe Devine I click

[@JohnKobaRuddy]

well thats simpleton behaviour for you

[@_Super_Hans_]

Finally Joe Devine is back, the only reason anyone has been hanging onto a subscription to this channel

[@danielsogge136]

Speak for yourself

[@Fernadogcv]

Until is a podcast again, my subscription won't come back

[@DanielS10291]

@@danielsogge136looks like he spoke for at least 100 people

[@chrisfraser5088]

The real reason City appear to be boring, is because everyone sits in a deep block against them. As time has gone on, more and more teams are willing (and even built to) sit insanely deep against better teams. There are games where teams barely come out of their own third, much less their own half.

[@goyonman9655]

Arsenal did not sit back against them in the first game Boring game Liverpool have not sat back against them Boring games

[@chrisfraser5088]

@@goyonman9655 the recent Liverpool games are an outlier tho. The majority of Liverpool/City games over the last 5/6 years have been very exciting. And yes, Arsenal absolutely sat back against City at the Emirates. Not in the same way as we did at the Etihad, but we DID sit back. Our transitions were HELLA slow barring a few quick counters.

[@goyonman9655]

@@chrisfraser5088 Arsenal absolutely did not sit back at the emirates The two teams plaed guardiola style football Boring game And whatever excitement you must have gotten out of Man City Liverpool is mostly due to Liverpool When Man U and Arsenal were the two top teams in the Barclays era, they had more 3xcitung games than that

[@musayibghani3986]

The recent liverpool game wasn't boring.

[@russellward4624]

The real reason people say City are boring is because they're lfc, utd and arsenal fans and City win.

[@BiggestBirdonMars]

His more concentration on control was cuz he couldnt win the UCL cuz teams kept screwing him over in crazy ways If youre pep and you get criticized for not winning the UCL you're gonna find a way whatsoever

[@declanfrew6958]

Much like Guardiola is trying to drive the chaos out of football, The Athletic are trying to drive it out of Joe. Joe will never be defeated

[@aayushrai8881]

I miss the pod with Joe and Alex.

[@DanielS10291]

Alex left

[@Marinucas]

He's back!

[@HonestDre]

Entertainment is not entirely lost to Jon

[@steyno7471]

The problem with Man City's tactical fouls and other team's is that they don't often get booked for it

[@mustardking20]

In the middle third it’s nearly given every time. The breakouts by the opposing team from their defensive third and entering into their offensive third is what is not booked enough. That being said, those are harder to see on the pitch at the moment by the refs; middle third tactical fouls are easier to distinguish.

[@kieran9882]

@@mustardking20The var team can see those tactical fouls

[@john_mega]

you must have not watched the Man City Arsenal game

[@steyno7471]

@@john_mega well one game does not account for ALL the other games

[@otto_jk]

@@kieran9882 var doesn't interfere with yellow cards only reds and tactical foul is a yellow not a red

[@ChaingunCassidy]

I think this is a question that gets asked every time a tactical system is at the peak of its powers, no doubt some team will come along and make new waves with another tactic and the process will start all over again.

[@jasiono87]

Most people don’t enjoy watching football for tactics though, they enjoy watching the players qualities.

[@mathieu8641]

I want Joe Devine to host each and every podcast of The Athletic. And I miss the intro songs of Tifo IRL

[@timcook5117]

Aside from the great content and delivery, the pres here is ace... love the laser, wasp & bee and matching the PiP box frame with the picture frames on set is such a neat touch. You're knocking out the park here, I love it

[@Lioness_UTV]

God yes. I can't watch City on a consistent basis, I also thinks he has a way of reshaping a players talent like Grealish to fit his style vs allowing those players to havr a little more freedom to express themselves. I understand why and I appreciate the genius of Pep but much prefer to watch Klopp's Liverpool as opponents always get a real chance or more every match.

[@SiyabongaSibiya-pj9gb]

Fair enough everybody can't like the same thing. But personally like pep becoz it limits risk alot. And is more of a team effort then individuality.thats why u don't have to be brilliant at city. But as long as play yo role perfectly. After all football is a team sport

[@BigPurp9]

Even as a United fan who despises every single thing about both clubs one thing I’ll always give Liverpool/Klopp is that they’re still somewhat entertaining to watch compared to the boring predictability of Pep

[@oHazerd]

@@SiyabongaSibiya-pj9gb Risk = Fun. Sport is entertainment after all. If you want to a great player you would study how Pep's players work. But their players are hardly entertaining and memorable save for the few games a season where Pep's team play a great squad

[@Model_Roe]

I dont watch epl but if I had to Id definitely watch Liverpool it looks more similar to Lalilga way of playing I been saying major reason I dont watch Man Cityy is that they are boring to watch and not a club Id take 90 minutes out of my day to watch football

[@LV-xy6vv]

​@@Model_Roebarca and madrid with the power of friendship>>>

[@edmann1820]

What's boring is everyone trying to play the same way. There is no right and wrong way of playing football. Only the winning and the losing. Thinking you can play Pep's style with Burnley is boring and does not yield results.

[@vespasiancloscan7077]

Trying to be proactive and play with the ball is more likely to achieve success than accepting your fate as a small club and parking the bus. Teams like Brighton and Rayo Vallecano overachieve because they're willing to play football even against teams with better players.

[@djevo5662]

I can simplify this for you. Fans don't want to watch football when a team has 80% of the ball, passing the ball side to side. This is why city play more games at 3pm on a Saturday than any other top team. The reason Liverpool v city games aren't boring is klopp adds chaos

[@Model_Roe]

This is also why man Citys stadium is always half empty lol personally I find Man City boring to watch last time I tried watching their game I fell asleep

[@russellward4624]

​@Model_Roe another goof that doesn't watch games. Just regurgitated Twitter meams

[@adem1781]

@@Model_Roe Literally the best way to get to sleep.

[@Model_Roe]

@@adem1781 exactly 😂 I'm sorry but I'm not taking 90 minutes out of my day to watch Man City play they're so boring I'd rather watch Vini or Arda Guler play for 10 minutes

[@bighamster2]

The broadcasters pick games purely on revenue, and there are simply far more United, Liverpool, Arsenal fans etc. than Man City fans.

[@xisckillerx7578]

Loved the mitchell and webb look reference with the big talk joke!

[@drex5160]

Actually when his city teams were more attacking, they were more vulnerable to counter attacks & hence weren't very successful in the UCL. I'll credit the man Pep says is the most influential manager of the last 20 years: *_De Zerbi_* Coz of him top managers are playing 3 or 4 Cbs & we don't see those flying full backs on both sides as much. Watching Brighton without Mitoma is boring af.

[@arvin9425]

The top managers you refer to is really just pep and arteta tho. Klopp, Ange, poch, emery etc still use technical fullbacks very high up. In Emery's case he uses both with Konsa on one side and Alex Moreno on the other

[@chadrampersad]

Brighton are entertaining still cause of Enciso and Adingra

[@drex5160]

​​@@arvin9425 Klopp often uses Joe Gomes at full back & Konsa is a CB. So they are using 3 Cbs like I said 🤦‍♂️

[@drex5160]

​@@chadrampersad no where near as entertaining as Mitoma.

[@adem1781]

tbh you are looking at this wrong, He needed to sign a big striker and actually play a system that didn't require 428092385 CM's passing and cheesing sideways. Pep can only win with the avengers he can't actually win something like Jose did with Inter and of course Porto. Pep would go in and be like ; Okay so i'm going to spend £300,000,000 on wingbacks... Ermm no we don't have the budget Mr Pep ? Pep : Okay how can we cheat ? I'm gonna go do some lovely Nandralone !

[@Queijo566]

Yes, he has. Next question

[@BestBoyPatrick]

I’ve heard absolutely no one try and argue for the merits of that game last week as a spectacle… then up steps Jon Mackenzie

[@aquibaquil2476]

Truly a man of the people

[@mikegreen3485]

A man of the goblins

[@BestBoyPatrick]

@@mikegreen3485 a KING of the goblins

[@johnquadrino3012]

Fun video! Thanks for the analysis... COYS

[@Starfield123]

Has a football fan who hates Pep with a PASSION. He made football so boring and frustrating to play

[@richTVproduction]

He took the unpredictability out of the game. The very thing that makes football exciting. I can't watch Guardiiolas games since Barca days. He sucks the life out of every game. Just a control freak at the highest level.

[@amphiphil844]

You completely missed the point in the intro. The game was not boring because it ended 0-0. The game was boring because neither team took any risk. One team did not take enough risk to get the ball, the other one only cared about not losing the ball. In a typical 0-0, both teams try to win and score goals but fail to do so. In City vs Arsenal, neither team took the risks necessary to score.

[@arvin9425]

They addressed this in the video? Talked about how pep won't pass into pressure because he didn't want to lose the ball.

[@bighamster2]

It feels like you didn't watch the whole video

[@danielsogge136]

Good to see Joe back. Good vid!

[@MegaTimtheman]

The problem is every team plays the same way now, play out from the back and high press. In the naughties there was a much bigger variety of styles of play which i think made football more interesting

[@whatisyourname8450]

Must entertaining games ever were man city vs Liverpool from previous years. But man city get boring when opponents like to park the bus in defend. But if the opponents are open and wants to play like Liverpool, city are fun.

[@shishirsonone3757]

Loved this video. Keep it up people Especially the last line of the host. It sums up everything.

[@actonman7291]

4-4-2 park the bus or go to cattenacio do a Simeone and just play to not lose or and snatch a goal on a counterattack or set piece in Fergie time no way. Guardiola do change football for better.

[@eamonreidy9534]

It's actually great seeing great managers build teams to the highest standard to compete. Mourinho, Klopp and Arteta

[@bernardfox9078]

I know this is after the fact but was RM vs City boring ? The City Arsenal game was boring because Arsenal sat back and parked the bus. They were too afraid to take City on.

[@Vainglory14]

I find it really interesting how many seemingly contradictory things are happening in modern football. Games seem boring yet most goals in 60 years. Record points totals for winning the league yet mid-table clubs have way more resources to compete than ever before. Quality on the ball is incredibly important yet top teams are opting to play center backs at full back.

[@bighamster2]

Although those centre backs are better on the ball than most full backs were 10 years ago.

[@SmileySadFaceHD]

He does not make football boring, his teams always are great. But he does ruin players, makes them just a cog on a machine and kills any individuality. Grealish is the clearest example nowadays.

[@21DMN]

What a stupid question. Why would Pep make football boring? He is coach of ONLY ONE football team. The rest can play whatever they want. What is Guardiola's fault for that?

[@neocell710]

Thank you!!

[@pritishvikramadithyan4088]

I guess they mean how Pep's team is influencing other coaches/clubs into playing similar to them. And how those clubs are dominating football and in turn influencing even more clubs to play like that...(Arteta/Arsenal, Alonso/Leverkusen, Xavi/Barca, Luis Enrique/PSG)

[@sylvainmirouf4683]

That 's actually a proper question. Guardiola has changed football so much as a whole since he started managing that yes, he has made a lot of games boring, it is a fact. Ask around you, you'll be surprised about how many people despise him for that simple reason, he made the game boring. He won playing boring football and everyone tried to copy him to get a chance of winning, hence all the boring matches nowadays.

[@21DMN]

@@sylvainmirouf4683 Who forces other teams to play like Guardiola? In fact NOBODY plays like Guardiola. They all play with the ball but nobody has his style. A silly question. If "boring" for you means having control of the ball and not losing it 100 times to be counter-attacked like in the old days in the Premiership, I prefer this football.

[@tamalchakraborty791]

I think any talk on tactical ideology is redundant without dwelving deep into the history of Football and the evolution of tactics. The dutch/spanish positional game is actually the combination of old school positional attack ( having more players inside the box than opposition, crossing to create chances, dribbling to go inside the spaces) and the scottish passing game (playing the ball into your teammates' feet) . With positional advantages and passing , you move up the field.

[@CaughtColdBoxing]

John is the only guy part of the athletic that doesn’t look and talk like a school prefect

[@10Zenil]

There is no unpredictability in the way Pep and other tactical coaches train their team. It's very much like making players robotic and trying to make them only certain things. This is an issue occurring in football where tactics seems to dominate the uniqueness and creativity of football

[@BiggestBirdonMars]

This is such a casual take

[@NorthLondonForeverCOYG]

Actually not. Some players have the freedom for their creativeness. Salah at Liverpool can move wherever he wants when attacking. Foden, Silva and Rodri at City are given freedom. Ødegård and Havertz at Arsenal are given freedom. That’s why Ødegård is playing deeper this season. Foden and Silva can go on wing or midfield whenever they want. Salah has to press and track back but if his team has won the ball he can either operate centrally or at the wing. Yes the game looks robotic but when you see deeper it’s really not. Saka at Arsenal can cut inside or go near the by line depending on what movement in the box he sees. This control and domination is pretty much interesting for me and some others.

[@thierryhenry674]

17-20 ManCity and 09-12 Barcelona had the most skillful and creative players in the world. They are allowed to be creative in given situations.

[@DopeBoyFaze]

re you delusional....that Barca team had technical players who's weaker foot is better than any man city player. Don't compare man city ever to that team​@@thierryhenry674

[@10Zenil]

@@thierryhenry674 the problem arrives when there are managers who try to play in similar style and in similar tactics and pressing patterns, hence why the Man City vs Arsenal been boring for a while but City vs Liverpool or others have been fun. Tactics are good when the teams play different style. Similar ones often leads to a boring game

[@chrishoward8500]

It was going so well, then Duncan spoke an awful lot of nonsense. Saying City’s titles “all blend into one” is actually a joke. I can’t think of a single City season where they have played the same way as the previous one. Pep always changes/adapts. Look at Pep’s team with Sane-Aguero-Sterling. It played wildly differently to now. This idea that City are boring doesn’t hold up when you look at which side has the record for most goals in a PL season. For me, games can be boring predominantly because of how deep and compact opponents play these days. It’s not really anything to do with City. No team would be able to play swashbuckling football against the kind of low blocks City face. Why is it deemed to be City’s fault that everyone else is scared to leave their own half against them? Why not demand the opponents make it more entertaining? It’s a weird take to pin this on City.

[@goyonman9655]

It's the same philosophy Control

[@goyonman9655]

Arsenal's first game against city, they weren't deep or compact. The game was boring Liverpools games against city were yheur most boring and they weren't deep or compact. Pep's football is objectively higher quality. But more boring

[@vespasiancloscan7077]

Teams have had more success trying to bring the game into City's half than parking the bus and hoping for a good counter. It takes balls and quality to do it, but these are desirable things, no? Pep did such a great job everywhere he went that now people are actually defending sides that would rather draw 0-0 than try to win and risk losing badly.

[@goyonman9655]

@@vespasiancloscan7077 Nobody is arguing if it is less quaĺitative The question is, is it more boring to watch, and the answer is yes. When two teams play guardiola style football against one another, as Arsenal and City 1st leg this season, (Arsenal did not park the bus), It's still boring. You need A DIFFERENT attacking style from the oppising team to make the game more exciting

[@trinigooner8865]

​@@vespasiancloscan7077 in a title race as close as this....the ONLY thing that matters is the "results"...not how it "looks" for the neutral fans..if Arsenal wins the PL by goal difference for example...That 0-0 result against a direct rival would have made a huge difference... understand that

[@austinthesan-antonian3932]

I wouldn’t say that Pep makes things less boring; other teams are just making things way more interesting than City have been this season.

[@jibberism9910]

Football has changed, and it will change again. As a Dutchy, we've seen our NT change - many don't like it. I do. Dutch teams may not have the grandiosity of days gone - they are dangerous, and often allow decent (but not great) players to shine and deliver. It's still a very tactical game, and much more controlled at it. That's how you, maybe, god willing, win a world cup. Not by telling everyone you were actually the best. Koeman once delivered with Ajax in 2002-2003, playing from solid defense. Who knows, maybe he will deliver at the Euros this summer. The time seems right.

[@tuffmbassador522]

The only issue is the spits and depth if Frenkie or Reinders go down we have a problem, and Xavi Simons has been a bit suspect

[@FlashMeterRed]

26:28 - i love this take. that arteta doesn't use momentum... in a team you famously only get into if you have a miraculous series of good games from the fringe, then you are run into the ground until someone else gets the same chance. arsenals collapse streaks always coincide with this transition happening at several positions at once. sounds like someone that is only influenced by momentum, and whose success depends on it.

[@joshbrown2217]

Was that edit of Chelsea celebrating that late win against United a last minute editing job? The table doesn't reflect that game, so I'm guessing it was. If so, love that they put it in to really reinforce that point that it is still a big game.

[@deezeedrone]

I did not expect The Duncan Alexander do have that appearance and I'm moderately surprised I should say

[@user-bq2tc6dh6t]

Yes I can’t stand watching them, it’s like a training match and if you seen one game you have seen them all. Barcelona and Spain 12+ years ago was the same. But if you were the manager be it Pep or Vicente del Bosque it’s fantastic you want to win and control the game. Also if you never watched football before and watched city for the first time you would think is passing the only thing that matters in the sport. I’m irish and into rugby I couldn’t watch most of the six nations for the same reasons to be honest.

[@tomanthony8349]

I feel like what you’ve described Leverkusen doing is exactly how city play against inferior opponents…it’s when they’re up against an arsenal who are so defensively sound that things get “boring.” I’d be interested to see how Leverkusen’s tactics look against stronger teams to prove the point you’re trying to make.

[@bryanspicer90]

Correct

[@banwahlang12]

When Assna parked the bus..it's not easy to scored

[@goyonman9655]

First leg, they didn't park any bus Still a boring game

[@naes8258]

Cope.

[@brenaldo]

@theathletic the only reason i watch the whole video from begining right to end - ads included - is Joe Devine.

[@BiggestBirdonMars]

Some people just dont like possessional play or positional play they prefer direct and ping pong football What i hate more is how people act like hes been playing like thi seen he became a coach

[@collinsenosh]

In an attention deficiency era Joe Devine is the crucial link between common man fans and the nerd analysts!

[@curiosity_fan]

Finally got to see the guy in the video who has been narrating tactics in Tito football videos

[@akashgooner4892]

Has pep guardiola made football boring..what a joke..I will go as far to say that he’s been the most important person in modern football..a true revolutionary..for me in a fair world based on merit, he should be the highest paid person in football..even more than all elite footballers..we have never had a manger more important to the team than the players..look at the players manc have lost and still how they perform..the one common denominator has always been pep guardiola..even though he’s not yet at guardiola’s level arteta is the most important person at arsenal than all the football player combined..this is one of the most positive thing that has happened to modern football in my humble opinion 🙏🏻

[@zeybarur]

The thing is, it seemed like both teams didn't really want to play the game. It wasn't "tense" or "intense", like 2 boxers looking to get a punch in, it was like both boxers staying in their respective corners for the whole round apart from a few walkabouts to stretch their legs. The crowd didn't help, obviously, but it really felt like both teams just wanted it to be over from the starting whistle. This wasn't a "good 0-0", even old-school Catenaccio enthusiasts would've cursed this snoozefest.

[@most5795]

It's robot football yes. Positional play stops players from expressing themselves on the pitch

[@actonman7291]

What team do play the way you want?

[@otto_jk]

@@actonman7291 Liverpool, Real Madrid, Leverkusen, Napoli last year, Spurs under Ange, Bielsa's Leeds and now Uruguay and Nagelsmann's Leipzig, Bayern and Germany for example

[@thierryhenry674]

17-20 ManCity and 09-12 Barcelona had the most skillful and creative players in the world. They are allowed to be creative in given situations.

[@danpreston564]

It’s not like it’s anything new. Most managers do this. I remember reading Steve Claridge's autobiography, and when he was at some terrible lower league club (Cambridge?), he was dropped because he did something (minor) on the pitch that he wasn’t supposed to do, he was expressing himself and his coach hated it. I’ve seen a season of football under Martin Allen, where every player just had to lump the ball towards the corner flag to try and turn the defence around and players were dropped if they did it differently.

[@vespasiancloscan7077]

The team expresses itself, rather than select individuals. If you give a player the freedom to express himself, you're doing it at the expense of others.

[@electpaisa]

Interesting conversations on this one, but we're overthinking this: ManCity has made the PL boring because they've won 4 out of 5 of the last titles, they'll likely win this to make it 4 in a row and they'll probably keep winning for the rest of the decade because they have the best squad, fact that won't change since they can keep overspending, and even 115 found violations is not enough to stop them because they have friends in high places.

[@bernardfox9078]

We are fifth on the spending league in the last five years.

[@shar3267]

again, friends in high places ​@@bernardfox9078

[@ADxtraIsHere]

What found violations? Educate me

[@basedstvr3132]

this video should have been longer, and Duncan was fun to have on.

[@thuo1000]

I've always been entertained by Pep's brand of football. The way they move the ball, create pockets of space and just dominate the opposition is entertaining to watch, at least for me. From Pep's Barcelona, Pep's Bayern to Pep's Man City. Also, for those with an eye for tactics, Pep's teams are great to learn from.

[@Model_Roe]

Entertained????? LOL whats there to be entertained by????? Last time I tried watching a Man City game I literally fell asleep I was so bored

[@thuo1000]

@@Model_RoeEveryone is different. If you are bored by watching Pep's brand of football, doesn't mean everybody is.

[@Model_Roe]

@@thuo1000 whatever floats your boat my guy 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 it's just majority of people I've seen agree Man City are boring to watch you're the only person I've heard say out loud they find it entertaining that's why I'm laughing 🤣

[@David-xy2ly]

This conversation was more entertaining than city Arsenal game, and this was very boring lol 😂

[@roolaing]

He is exceptional, but exceptional with exceptional players. It is not his fault, but each club has taken over has had extraordinary talent (and wealth) at their disposal. If you aim to play a controlling game with those inherent benefits, you’ll probably control quite a lot of games. He must be an extraordinary communicator to get his teams playing the way he does - that’s indisputable.

[@stevenesbitt3528]

Always reminds me of f1, why is max the best? Because he has the best car, but why does he have the best car?

[@vespasiancloscan7077]

@@stevenesbitt3528 I don't know anything about cars, but I imagine it's easier to objectively determine a "best car" in F1. Much more difficult to do that with football squads. Is Max's car the best because he's the one driving it? Probably not. But is Pep's team the best because he's the one managing it? Very possible.

[@bighamster2]

​@@stevenesbitt3528Not sure that's the *best* example, since he's a Red Bull academy driver. It's a bit like saying "why is Saka at Arsenal?" Obviously if their teams were terrible they might have left by now, but they're largely there because they've always been there

[@karmaascendant3936]

@@bighamster2 i guess the point is that the best drivers get put in the best cars as both get the best out of each other. You cant but someone who's afraid to go over 50 on a motorway in a F1 car in the same way Sean Dyche will never be in charge of a European elite side.

[@jonathansibanyoni9154]

Yes, City are a great team. They have world class players. But their passing passing ball is boring. I would rather watch e.g Man U vs Wolves etc than City

[@DavidLimofLimReport]

Bring back long ball football baby!

[@CheGypter]

To sometimes be bored is a requirement to be excited when there is a really thrilling game. Its just a matter of demand/supply high scoring games are cool because they dont happen that often, if we change the game to make more of them...well then it wont be as exciting anymore

[@DSMGP5000]

26:52 😢

[@Yasso0ry33]

Maybe we should have a penalty shootout after the first half if the teams are tied 0-0. Then they continue in the second half with the score line of the between the two halfs penalty shootout that should virtually eliminate the 0-0 games

[@Goonerpoo]

I also liked the part where you guys explained why and how Pep's football changed. The reason Pep or Arteta play four CBs is not because they want to play four CBs, it's because they think it's an advantage to win more football matches. There are experiences and conditions that have made them think that way, and when they think it's no longer an advantage to win matches, I think they will again introduce a new perspective and adjust the dynamic of the team. I saw Mackenzie say on Twitter that he wanted Alonso to come to the Premier League, and now it makes sense. I'm curious to see what the next phase of football will look like, and how the new gravity will change the landscape of elite football.

[@petersugar7726]

if we think about this way playing two more cb is just adding more height to the team as well instead of lets say two avarage heightfb there will be two taller than avarage cb, since 2018 liverpool speed and stamina just so important the direction football moving is its gonna be 10 absolute athletes on the pitch who can outrun the opposition for longer time and we are going to see less and less technical players just like the number 10 position vanished from the pitch compared to 10 years ago

[@arsenalogist4285]

Pep hasnt made football boring imo. Its all these other coaches who try copying him

[@neilwhelan54]

Pep's Barcelona were a joy to watch. His Man City team, not so much.

[@Ruony24]

OMG i lived to see the day Joe Devine actually praises Arsenal players

[@Goonerpoo]

This is a very good analysis video. As an Arsenal fan, I think City would have had a better chance of winning if they had attacked more aggressively, as Arsenal were unable to start Martinelli, who is pretty much our only counter attack specialist, in that game, and if City had scored a goal first, City would have been able to hold on to their lead.

[@vespasiancloscan7077]

City don't really have the players to attack aggressively. All of their "wingers" (they only have 1 in Doku) are ball-to-feet kind of players. It's only Foden that can really force his way into the box, or KDB that can force passes inside. And I don't think it's by Pep's design.

[@jgmediting7770]

Yes, next question.

[@willyum3920]

Laser gun feature for president!

[@dangling-donk]

Wtf! Arteta killed the game by sitting in and camping 10 men behind the ball.

[@Veaseify]

I think it was Jonathan Wilson who wrote that if goals are what people want why aren't there 50,000 crowds at Primary School football games? The Bundesliga is written off as a boring league, not just because of Bayern Munich but because there are many faceless teams with no obvious star players, yet it always has the highest goals per game ratio of any of the top 5 so it obviously isn't just about how often the ball hits the back of the net...

[@JMC1992]

At 24:30… this kind of play should be used persistently by any club with a good manager.

[@Orac11e]

It's complicated

[@maccy4829]

The short answer is yes. However it’s not really his job to be exciting, it’s his job to win.

[@goyonman9655]

Perfect Answer The question should be "Does Pep prove that football played at the highest quality is not as exciting as football played at tge second highest quality

[@jgmediting7770]

Wrong. His job is to win and entertain.

[@goyonman9655]

@@jgmediting7770 Wrong Entertainment is an extra His main job is to win

[@jgmediting7770]

@@goyonman9655 some clubs disagree, and that’s why they’re the great clubs with worldwide fanbases. United, for example, is literally built off the back of Busby and his philosophy.

[@john_mega]

Because it was the covid start season, I remember little of the Liverpool season.

[@akashgooner4892]

I have a man crush on Jon mckenzie..😂..love ur analysis❤

[@charlesthomashanley]

Can we get a blog explaining the last 2 years of Joe's career

[@dondamon4669]

Definitely! Every player plays the same every team plays the same they are coached since kids the same they are athletes first and footballers second, the players are told exactly what to do and if they dont follow they won't play. Players like Zidane, Scholes,Cantona would not make it today. Players are just cogs in a system,when Pep subbing a player all he has to say is do exact same thing as player coming off! Manchester United seems to be the most old skool and if they get a mixture of flair, exciting, character expressing football along with a rigid control style when needed we would be great but you need great players for that. Pep plays safe,passing, boring, no risk football but because he has best players in the world one will eventually score

[@jamespreston7823]

🤓Once again football pundits prove they don't know the (English) language as well as they should 🤓 Boring is a synonym of uninteresting, i.e. an antonym of interesting - boring *_cannot_* be interesting However, interesting can be entertaining, albeit the overlap is likely constrained in some way. ( David Attenborough, Antiques Roadshow, detailed football analysis etc. 😉... ) There seems to be some major confusion between *_entertaining_* and *_exciting_* . Could something be exciting without being interesting ? I can't immediately think of a scenario, since both usually include "hold/capture attention". Being savaged by a 🐻, would not perhaps usually be called interesting, but would certainly hold *_my_* attention... My 🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓 work is done here Great video JON 😉keep up the good work 😆

[@JavierDarsie]

Any idea where Jon got that sweatshirt?

[@jay7dsi]

looks like something from bornagainprints

[@dondamon4669]

Sin bin would be brilliant, imagine the player off for five minutes and the other pushing forward and the dominant team defending then he comes back on and the crowd roar and they go back on attack

[@johnrossi5665]

We need Reuben on the street to be a regular segment!!

[@T.E.S.S.]

Joe's face in the thumbnail looks like he's pleading to be rescued

[@TheBusbyBabes]

our big beautiful boy is back

[@joepiekl]

I don't know why City are being blamed for the City-Arsenal game being boring. Liverpool-City was fantastic because both teams had a go. City-Arsenal was boring because one team came and parked the bus. And it wasn't City.

[@Tocoolant]

I personally never understood the distaste for Pep's type of football. I don't only not consider it boring. I consider it absolutely magical if the other team is trying to play football instead of parking the bus. But that's not Pep's fault.

[@crystallan21]

Has the Athletic made Tifo unwatchable?

[@bighamster2]

I've found the recent videos to be very good, personally

[@telquel7843]

I find it a bit silly to blame the attacking team for making a game boring because other teams default to low block because they're afraid to play open. 🤷 That said, if I'm managing a mid table or lower team against Vity, I am probably going to do the same thing: frustrate and try to hit on the counter. If you don't like tactical games with tidy positional play then watch other/lower leagues...

[@normanfernee3500]

Klopp carried the entertainment of this league on his back since he joined Liverpool.

[@hanspillow278]

Tipo in da house

[@bartvanhoof6278]

Don't forget the pass-back rule change in the early 1990s to counter a horrendously boring World Cup and increasingly defensive tactics.

[@Do27gg]

Yes he has, you can see that with arteta too

[@rodrigovillate6463]

Why is Joe in the miniature? 😂

[@brenaldo]

... the cool hands and the warm embrace ...

[@user-fi8zf1lp3f]

they play against parked buses every week. Thats why its seems boring to neutrals. Grealish looked good at Villa coz nobody parked the bus against villa and he had a lot of space to run.