Pep Guardiola Named England Icon as ‘One of the Best’ Players He’s Seen in Football

· GiveMeSport

Pep Guardiola managed Lionel Messi and coached against Cristiano Ronaldo, but the Catalan boss is convinced an ex-England man is one of the GOATs.

Pep Guardiola has seen many of football’s finest talents over the past three decades, both during his playing days and from the dugout. He has coached Lionel Messi, faced Cristiano Ronaldo, and even crossed paths with the legendary Diego Maradona.

Being regarded as one of the finest players Guardiola has ever watched is an exceptional compliment. That accolade was handed to one of England’s most iconic footballers back in 2014.

At that point, the former Manchester City manager was in charge of German giants Bayern Munich. Ahead of a blockbuster Champions League clash with Manchester United, Guardiola highlighted one of the Red Devils’ key stars for particular praise.

Wayne Rooney was carrying lingering injury concerns as David Moyes prepared his side for the European encounter. Guardiola, though, was certain the England international would take part.

> “Rooney will play, 100 per cent. He will play — I’ll wager you a big glass of beer,” he insisted.

That assurance demonstrated the level of respect Guardiola had for the threat Rooney posed. The Bayern boss then offered one of the highest compliments imaginable to the former Everton prodigy .

For Pep Guardiola, there can be no doubt about his choice of the greatest player of all time.

The then-Bayern boss said.

> "A big player, one of the best I have seen in my career."

Given the remarkable calibre of players Guardiola has come across throughout his career, that level of praise is significant. Rooney remains Manchester United’s all-time leading scorer , having scored 253 goals for the club. At the time, he was also approaching England’s scoring record — a record that has since been surpassed by Harry Kane.

Before Guardiola arrived in English football, there was little argument over who deserved to be considered the Premier League’s greatest-ever manager. Sir Alex Ferguson won an extraordinary 13 league titles with Manchester United before retiring in 2013.

Following Manchester City’s emergence as the dominant force in the city, comparisons between Guardiola and the legendary Scot have become increasingly common. When asked by to pick between the two , Rooney gave his view on the debate.

> "I think of course there are going to be arguments as to who is better, but I think people tend to just look at what Sir Alex did at Manchester United, and what he did at Aberdeen was incredible."

The Manchester City boss has gone up against some incredible managers over the years, but one stands out to him as his toughest opponent

Ultimately backing his former manager, the former striker-turned-pundit highlighted Ferguson’s achievements with Aberdeen as the key factor — pointing to that success as the distinction over Guardiola, who has regularly managed some of Europe’s biggest clubs. Rooney expanded on his reasoning:

> "And you'd ask the question, could Guardiola do that at a team like Aberdeen? There's questions, there's debate, I think Guardiola for his era is of course the best, and he's changed the way football is played worldwide ... but yeah, for me, Sir Alex, what he achieved in the game is incredible."

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