Sự khác biệt giữa Barca dưới thời Pep với Barca dưới thời Tito là rất rõ ràng. Số cơ hội tạo ra dưới thời Pep là rất lớn và số lần bị uy hiếm chỉ đếm trên đầu ngón tay. Ngay cả gặp những đội bóng lớn như Real madrid, AC Milan, MU cũng không thể tạo ra được quá 3 đến 5 cơ hội trúng đích. Chung kết C1 năm 2009, MU dứt điểm trúng đích đúng 1 lần và đây là tình huống việt vị. Real Madrid dưới thời Mou năm 2011 bán kết lượt về C1 cũng chỉ có 1 cơ hội trúng đích.
Dưới thời Pep, Barca không có đối thủ thực sự. Muốn thắng Barca phải cần rất nhiều may mắn và nỗ lực. Không có cơ hội ghi 2 bàn cách biệt vào lưới Barca.
Ở La Liga, dưới thời Pep, Barca luôn luôn ghi bàn ít hơn Real. Mùa 2011/2012 Barca ghi 114 lủng 29, Real 121 32. Mùa 2010/2011, Barca 95 21, Real 102 33. Mùa 2009/2010, Barca 98 24, Real 102 35. Mùa 2008/2009, Barca 105 35, Real 83 52.
Ngay cả HLV có quan điểm chiến thuật phòng ngự là trên hết như Mourinho cũng phải lủng lưới nhiều hơn cả Barca mới thấy cách Barca vận hành vững chắc như thế nào từ tuyến dưới.
Quan điểm của Pep là giữ bóng bằng mọi giá có thể và không cho đối phương có cơ hội chơi bóng. Nếu đối phương giữ được bóng thì lui về phòng thủ khu vực còn tốt hơn cả các đội bóng lớn khác vì sự gắn kết trong đội hình.
Còn Barca dưới thời Tito rất khác. Barca cố giữ bóng nhưng không phải bằng mọi giá và cứ để cho đối phương chơi bóng. Mục đích là không cho đối phương chơi bóng mới giúp ta có động lực và chí hướng để hành động chính xác. Mùa 2012/2013 Barca 105 37, Real 89 34, Atletico 58 27. Nếu Real đá tốt đầu mùa thì Barca đã không thể vô địch rồi.
Kết luận: không cho đối phương chơi bóng
Sau trận chung kết C1 2009. Pep phát biểu:
"Messi went back into midfield because we wanted to be superior in possession," Guardiola said.
"Without the ball we are a disastrous team, a horrible team, so we need the ball”.
Gần như cả trận Messi có rất nhiều banh và quần MU tơi tả.
Barca dưới thời Pep hơn hẳn so với phần còn lại. Ít nhất người xem sẽ thấy họ cao hơn một bậc thay vì phải thót tim xem đội nhà bị phản công và hành hạ.
Khi thi đấu với các đội bóng lớn, Messi thường được xếp đá thấp xuống để hỗ trợ giữ banh và cầm banh tấn công. Bây giờ Barca không còn khả năng giữ banh nữa, rất mong manh dễ vỡ. Ngày xưa chưa có đội nào pressing được Barca. Bây giờ bị pressing tí là mất banh.
Pep Guardiola - what his players and peers say about him
Guardiola in numbers
Since being appointed as manager of Barcelona in 2008, Pep Guardiola has won 14 trophies: two Champions League crowns, three La Liga trophies, two Copa del Rey, three Supercopas, two Uefa Super Cups and two Fifa Club World Cups.
Guardiola during his playing days at Barcelona
Guardiola was only 37 years old when he won his first Champions League trophy in 2009, becoming the youngest manager to lift the trophy.
Barcelona have gained a reputation as a free-flowing, attacking side under Guardiola. This season they have scored 170 goals in all competitions.
Guardiola is also a Barcelona legend from his playing days. He won 17 medals during his career, including six La Liga titles and an Olympic gold with Spain.
The Catalan has won 76.4% of his league games while in charge at the Nou Camp, compared to predecessor Frank Rijkaard's record of 58.9%.
The former central midfielder took charge of 15 "El Clasicos" against rivals Real Madrid as Barcelona manager, winning nine of them.
Barcelona have scored 363 points in 148 league games under the 41-year-old, nine more than Real Madrid (354) and over 100 more than any other side.
Of all the clubs Guardiola has faced in all competitions as Barca manager, he has only failed to register a single victory against one club - Chelsea - failing to beat them in four attempts.
What they said about him
"I want to thank Pep with all my heart for everything he has given me personally and professionally." - Lionel Messi, on his Facebook page.
"A Barca myth, the last Mohican of the Cruyff era. We'll never again have a coach capable of winning six titles in one year, which is practically impossible." - former Barcelona player Hristo Stoichkov.
"Guardiola is the best possible coach for Barcelona." - Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho.
"Pep is Barca. He lives for this club. That is what differentiates him from many coaches." -Barcelona president Sandro Rosell.
"Pep immediately transmitted an enormous amount of pride in our work, ambition and hunger. He won our confidence from the first day because we could see that things were being done correctly and then when results started to flow the confidence grew with them." - Barcelona striker Lionel Messi.
"He's one of the few intellectuals I have come across in a dressing room, intellectual in the sense he thinks about a lot of things. A lot about football, of course, but also about literature and other cultural things." - Former England coach Fabio Capello.
Pep Guardiola and Lionel Messi
"He doesn't give himself a minute's rest. He's pig-headed, football is his everything and he puts so much intensity into everything. Pep's almost got a sickness for football." - Barcelona midfielder Xavi.
"Pep Guardiola was a very intelligent player - I always felt that very strongly when I was on the pitch with him.He knew how to move and was very aware of the movement of others." - Former Italy defender Franco Baresi.
"Barca are the best team in the world. I already knew [that] when I got there, and when I left. Guardiola is a fantastic trainer, the problems between us were different." - Former Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
"He has shown that a young tactician can be successful at the highest level. It's my goal to become as successful at Ajax." - Ajax manager and former Barcelona defender Frank de Boer.
"Pep is the secret weapon of this group. Leaving aside the sheer quality of players, he is a very special talent, along with the rest of his coaching staff. Pep Guardiola is one of the best secrets and the most important member of the team." - Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes.
"In my time as manager, it's the best team I've faced." - Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, after Guardiola's Barcelona team beat United in the 2011 Champions League final.
"What a coach, what a manager. He's a great guy, a role model with many years as a coach ahead of him. I am not sure anyone can replicate what he has done at Barcelona." - Chelsea interim manager Roberto di Matteo, whose team beat Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals.
"The philosophy of Barcelona has to be bigger than winning or losing a championship.Guardiola is one of the representatives of this philosophy and made this philosophy triumph so I would have loved him, even going through a disappointing year, to stay and come back and insist with his philosophy. That would be interesting." - Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.
Pep Guardiola to review Barca tactics after Chelsea defeat
Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola says the Champions League semi-final defeat by Chelsea may force his side to change their tactics, but insists they played "exceptionally well" in defeat.
"I've transmitted this crazy theme of 'you have to go out and attack, attack, attack'," said Guardiola.
"Maybe it's a lesson for the future? We have to find the way to attack better."
The 41-year-old said he would decide whether to renew his Barcelona contract in "the next few days".
He added: "We'll talk about everything and then take a decision because it's evident that it's time to."
While he could not fault his players' effort in the loss to Chelsea over the two legs, he conceded that he might need to find more variation to their play.
"The first thing that crosses my mind is huge sadness. I think we played exceptionally well," he said.
"I try to figure out what to say when looking at the team, about what we did wrong to not reach the final and I can't think of anything.
"The opposition was always there, very defensive and good on the counter-attack.
"We did everything we could but we couldn't score another goal and football is about scoring."
