The Project Manager

Over the three decades of the Premier League, the institution hosted some of the sport’s most creative and innovative managers. From those who tried to reinvent tactics to those who built clubs in their image, the league is an artist’s workshop.

However, since Pep’s arrival, it seems that the league is constantly on the lookout for the next great project manager.

At the onset of the Pep era, two types of managers emerged from the post-Ferguson era. The Klopp tactics-based nerds and the control-obsessed Pep merchants dominated the league.

While the Klopp prototype never truly broke away from historic football models, the Pep clones did. Even during his tenure at Barça, Pep molded innovative tactics with complete control of the club’s direction. This dampened down while at Bayern, but City gave him the reins to their club.

Other managers tried to replicate the Spaniard with Arteta, the clear clone. None ever came close to the success of the former Barça man, but it’s not for a lack of trying. With each failure, however, this model seems less and less sustainable.

When he arrived on English shores, it became a foregone conclusion that Pep’s revolution appeared on the verge of domination.

Without a doubt, Pep transformed the club model in the Prem, but his disciples continue to fight over the scraps of what he left.

Bayern remains an outlier in the managerial career of Pep. It’s perhaps the only spot on his continental conquest where he never truly exerted complete control over a project.

PHOTO: Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch, Kyle Robertson/USA TODAY NETWORK

City, with their seemingly infinite resources, offered the generational talent the chance to build a club from scratch. The club’s growing academy gave the manager the necessary well by which Pep could tap into their limitless potential. Paired with an exciting academy, City’s financial domination offered Pep a rather interesting prospect.

In Manchester, Pep became the architect of a club in a way only a team with their resources could. Only City constantly find themselves poaching the World’s best talents to fill out a squad for Pep to conquer Europe once more. However, as Chelsea and PSG continue to prove, a true organizer is needed to build the side. 

However, almost any Pep clone would not have those resources. Their challenge revolves around building a club from the top down with their set vision.

Yes, the job becomes much more difficult, but it requires the club and manager’s patience. Even Pep took a few years to build this squad and get it winning. The ultimate prize, the Champions League trophy, eluded both club and manager until two years ago.

Pep lucked into the situation at City, especially with his arguable underperformance in Germany, but he still molded the club in his image. Looking at his direct coaching tree, one sees echoes of Pep in Enzo Maresca at Chelsea. Similar to the players who graduate from the City academy, they are in every way Pep players through and through.

Essentially, the difference between Klopp or Pep comes down to a philosopher versus an organizer.

A footballing battle between Lenin and Stalin, if you will.

It’s often argued that imitation is the best form of flattery, and most Premier League front offices seem to believe that. Rather than exploring interesting tactical managers, everyone aims for Pep and lives with where they land.

Arteta followed Pep’s path to a T, which is no surprise given how his role as assistant manager under the mercurial Spaniard. Unlike his former boss, Arteta joined an Arsenal side at its lowest point, lacking the City’s resources. This meant that Arteta needed to rebuild a club from scratch. 

Rather than aiming for the stars like City, Arteta opted to build his side through the academy and taking chances. Outside of Declan Rice, Arsenal’s rebuild stemmed from Arteta’s vision for his project. Additionally, he constantly aims to build a clubhouse culture in a way many managers often ignore.

However, Arteta’s shortcomings continue to emerge as Arsenal enters tighter and tighter title races. He lacks the ability to ramp up tactically the way Pep has always managed to.

As strange as it may be to argue, Erik Ten Hag profiles as United’s attempt to follow their neighbor’s model. Anyone who takes a look at Ajax right now understands just how important his presence was. Removing the Dutch manager destroyed Ajax and pushed them to the verge of relegation, which does show why United poached him.

Despite handling certain issues, which he deserves blame for, Ten Hag promised to build his side in the manner of Fergie. From time to time, Ten Hag seemed willing to use the youth players as central to his project, but the fruit is still yet to bear. This season truly feels to be the first one where things are coming together for the Dutchman, given the summer transfers and emergence of Mainoo.

Both Arteta and Ten Hag represent the new mold of manager that clubs want in the wake of Pep. Despite each individual manager’s successes, they continue to fail to live up to the Spaniard’s greatness.

Managerial trends remain an underrated aspect of the game’s development in the past decade. As the game continues to revolutionize itself with analytics and transfer strategies, a new brand of managers is needed.

For now, Pep stands as the model for football, but like the tide, it must soon draw back and enter a new era.

PHOTO: Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch, Kyle Robertson/USA TODAY NETWORK