"He did not impress me" - Guardiola’s man-management questioned by ex-Bayern defender Benatia

Posted Monday, April 20, 2020 by Caughtoffside.com

Medhi Benatia has raised questions regarding the man-management style of his former Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola.

The 33-year-old Moroccan centre-back enjoyed two seasons with Guardiola in Germany, lifting back-to-back Bundesliga crowns as well as the 2016 DFB-Pokal, before moving to Juventus.

Benatia under Guardiola: Five key things to know…

· Benatia joined Bayern Munich from AS Roma in 2014.

· He would go on to register 46 first-team appearances, all under Guardiola.

· However, his time with the Bundesliga giants was marred with injuries.

· Benatia left after two seasons, joining Juventus where he enjoyed more success.

· The 58-time Morocco international has questioned Guardiola’s man-management style.

Benatia ultimately made 46 first-team appearances under the current Manchester City manager, after joining from AS Roma, though his time in Bavaria was dogged by injuries and he often faced stiff competition.

Since leaving Bavaria, he’s enjoyed further success at Italian giants Juve, working alongside the meticulous Massimiliano Allegri but, again, Benatia — who has amassed 58 international caps for Morocco — was effectively a squad player.

Now plying his trade at Qatari outfit Al Duhail, where he called Jose Mourinho’s former right-hand man Rui Faria coach, Benatia is in no doubt where Guardiola ranks among the best around but feels players can’t forge a close relationship with him.

“He is tactically the best coach in the world, I don’t see one better than him,” he told Goal.

“But I did not like him very much in [terms of] the relationship with the players, from this point of view he did not impress me.”