Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas has said that manager Pep Guardiola, who will be stepping down from his post as the Barcelona manager following the Copa del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao on Saturday, is the greatest manager in the history of Barcelona. Guardiola has guided Barcelona to an unprecedented 13 trophies in four years, while he has the opportunity to claim his 14th title with the club he used to captain.
However, Guardiola has revealed that the pressure of managing Barcelona on a day-to-day basis has affected him and he will be taking a one-year sabbatical from the game. There has been glowing praise coming in for the Catalan, but none more so than the midfielder Cesc Fabregas.
It was Guardiola who decided to bring Fabregas back to the Camp Nou. The Spaniard left Barcelona for Arsenal when he was a teenager, but he has now signed for the club in a £ 35 million deal in the summer. Even though many argue that the presence of Fabregas picked the team has destroyed the stability that it had the previous seasons, Guardiola has always been supportive of Fabregas. Guardiola will be leaving the club in the same state he took over – without league title and Champions League title.
“If there is something extra about this final, it is the possibility of winning the title for our coach, the possibility of him winning yet another title and leaving with his head held high. He will do that anyway because he is the best coach this club have ever had, without a doubt. It is not something we have spoken about as a group but we all know we want to dedicate it to him,” Fabregas told reporters on Tuesday. Guardiola’s assistant manager Tito Villanova will be taking charge of the club from next season onwards.