Jamie Carragher: Pep Guardiola would win Premier League with current Man United squad
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Former Liverpool defender and Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher claims Manchester United would be Premier League champions if Pep Guardiola was in charge.
Guardiola's Manchester City remain unbeaten over halfway into the Premier League term, having won a staggering 19 of their 20 top-flight games.
After United's 2-2 draw with Burnley on Boxing Day, Red Devils boss José Mourinho insisted City are cruising to the Premier League title because his side have not spent enough money to compete with their title rivals, despite an outlay of nearly £300 million in over 18 months.
Writing in the Telegraph, though, Carragher believes Mourinho's argument is flawed and United would see a completely different approach if Guardiola was their manager.
Not only is their current form remarkable, the football the Citizens play is a delight to watch and some players, most notably Sterling, have come on leaps and bounds under Guardiola.
Guardiola's Manchester City remain unbeaten over halfway into the Premier League term, having won a staggering 19 of their 20 top-flight games.
After United's 2-2 draw with Burnley on Boxing Day, Red Devils boss José Mourinho insisted City are cruising to the Premier League title because his side have not spent enough money to compete with their title rivals, despite an outlay of nearly £300 million in over 18 months.
Writing in the Telegraph, though, Carragher believes Mourinho's argument is flawed and United would see a completely different approach if Guardiola was their manager.
There is a flaw in Jose Mourinho's argument that the difference between Manchester United and Manchester City is money.
If Pep Guardiola was in charge of the United squad I believe they would win the title.
Rewind to the start of this season and assess the head-to-head qualities of the United and City squads. Player-for-player, which would you argue was superior?
Was Ederson considered better than David de Gea? Were City's centre-backs Nicolás Otamendi and John Stones preferable to Eric Bailly and Phil Jones? Did United fans want Fernandinho or Nemanja Matić?
How many United or England fans would have swapped Marcus Rashford for Raheem Sterling a year ago? And when Anthony Martial first arrived from Monaco, was his reputation greater than that of Leroy Sané when he joined City?
We can go on throughout the respective lists. Where Mourinho sees players unable to execute his tactical blueprint, I believe Guardiola would have taken a different approach with a squad Mourinho believes needs reinforcing.
Not only is their current form remarkable, the football the Citizens play is a delight to watch and some players, most notably Sterling, have come on leaps and bounds under Guardiola.
City are ahead this season because Guardiola has developed players rather than expected ready-made talent to instantly deliver. Mourinho has increasingly come to rely on more experienced, established performers.
If Mourinho was coaching the Manchester City side they would not be playing the style of football we are seeing today. If there is a symbol of that look no further than Kevin De Bruyne, a player Mourinho coached at Chelsea but then sold. It is hard to believe Guardiola would have managed De Bruyne on a daily basis at a young age and not seen what he might become.
The financial power at City enabled Guardiola to create a team in the image of his great Barcelona side, but many of those he has improved were at the club. De Bruyne was an excellent player before Pep's appointment. Now he is the best player in the Premier League.
