Pep's a bit of a an enigma, sometimes I think he really gets us and at other times I feel he's about as distant to us as the rags are to their next league title.
He is undoubtedly City’s greatest and most successful manager although maybe not my most personal favourite. He has some excellent attributes as well as some rigid characteristics in his personality. He has idea's and can see patterns of play long before the norm but also appears stubborn to the point of it being detrimental at times. He can appear funny, likeable and charming but I feel he is far more abrasive and has little time for things outside of football in his daily routine. I'm not sure if his door is always open so to speak.
By and large I've stopped watching some of his interviews and press conferences. It's plainly obvious he doesn't want to do them, yet it's something he is contactually obliged to do often appearing niggly and short with his answers or sometimes rambling incoherently.
I'm not sure he has a plan B which most manager's get crucified for. Buying his way out of trouble could well be levelled at him. When his system works it's unstoppable and when it doesn't then we see the breakdown of the past few months. He does strange things like dropping players when they get MOTM, pulling Haaland off after 5 goals when he could have had the first double hat-trick in the CL. Personally I felt he didn't want Messi to be overshadowed by that. His call for 5 subs and then never appearing that interested in using them. Calling out certain players publicly but never ever others. Something other players he has managed have called him out for.
He's a genius of the modern game but that does not mean he cannot be questioned. I don't accept it's ok to take a year off, i'm fairly certain he doesn't too. Yes we all expected a drop off and we would all be accepting of that but in no other proffession can you let your standards drop for 12 months and not be questioned. Football moves quickly and the old adage of you are only as good as your last game is the standard set. Once they retire they can all sit back and wallow in the adulation this team will no doubt receive but then and only then will they become legends of the modern Premier League. Until that time his and the players legacy need to remain intact and performances and results need an upturn immediately.
I think his style of football has contributed to the lack of atmosphere at some games. Not all and it's not the sole reason of which there are many others but its a factor. It's not easy watching tippy tappy football rotating for the sake of it whilst sat in the freezing cold. For instance I can't remember the last single crunching tackle we put in. You know the type that get you off your arse screaming "Come on City get into the Bastards" it's just not the modern City. We need an injection of that and to show our opponents we can mix it with the best. The derby was chronic, not one hard tackle that I can remember.
We all love him and are fully behind him it's just sometimes I'm left scratching my head...in the style of Pep maybe!
I have my own feeling that he is on the spectrum but then I also think most of us are. A discussion for another time.
