Manchester United Legend Reveals Premier League Favorite and Best Manager

Manchester United legend and Sky Sport pundit Roy Keane has pegged Manchester City’s Pepe Guardiola as the Premier League’s best manager.

In an episode of Sky Bet’s Michah Richards and Roy Keane Driving Home for Christmas, Keane recounted why he believes Manchester City are the team to beat and Pep Guardiola is the best of all the Premier League managers.

“I remember we did a game last year, I didn’t write off Man City but I think I said they lost their mojo, and then they won the league and it was like a doddle to them.”

“Obviously I know they put in the hard work, but they won it and United finished second but United we’re never going to catch them, I’d never bet against Man City now, I’ve just learnt my lesson from last year.”

City, after finishing second in the Premier League in 2019-20, won the 2020-21 title with 86 points. Manchester United finished second in the table with a distant 74 points. Their +51 goal differential blew away the competition as well, with United’s +29 differential the next closest.

While Keane won’t bet against City, he still left the door open to a title challenge, saying “It doesn’t necessarily mean Liverpool or Chelsea can’t pip them to the title.” Liverpool beat City to the title in 2019-20 and Chelsea bested City in the 2020-21 Champions League Final.

Keane believes that City’s advantage lies in their manager, saying, “I think Pep is the man, I look at all of the managers I think Pep is the man.”

The statement immediately spurred Richards to ask Keane if he thinks Guardiola is the best, to which Keane said: “I do.”

Keane is aware of the boldness of his statement. The Premier League has an impressive stockpile of the sport’s most talented managers. From the top of the table to the bottom there are managers who have won at the highest level and earned praise for tactical prowess.

Keane, elaborating his point, said, “If you look at Pep’s [resume], and I know people always draw back, he’s got the best players, but you still have to manage them, you still have to find a style of play and if you’re going to pick a team to watch it’s going to be Manchester City, aren’t you.”

Guardiola’s resume is peerless in the modern game. In 12 full seasons, he has won nine domestic league titles, nine domestic cups, and two Champions Leagues. His career winning percentage of 72.89% is unheard of, and his career average of 2.36 points per match grades out at 89.7 points per 38 match season.

As Keane notably points out, Pep’s detractors will point to the financial and talent advantages he enjoyed while managing Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and now Manchester City. Since Pep joined City in the summer of 2016, they’ve spent $1.17 billion on transfers, the most in the Premier League.

Keane’s belief in Manchester City and in Pep Guardiola may be driven by the success the latter had playing for Manchester United. There he won seven Premier League titles, four FA Cups, and one Champions League under the guidance of a legendary manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, and backed by deep pockets.

The Premier League season has a long way to go yet, but through 18 matches, City have a three-point lead, the squad depth to weather any injury, and, according to Keane, the best manager in the league.