Pep Guardiola's Jack Grealish tactic will dictate Man City's £100m future

Pep Guardiola is credited for many things thanks to his status as the best manager in the world. Tactics, innovation, an ability to simplify complex systems to get his message across.

Is he a master man manager, though?

There have been countless examples of players who haven't liked his methods and have fallen by the wayside or opted to leave a club because they felt they couldn't work with Guardiola. It's often his way or the highway - and his record backs up that no-nonsense approach.

We're seeing examples of Guardiola laying the law down on his return to Manchester City this season, too. Julian Alvarez will have got the message over in France at the Olympics when Guardiola sternly told him to 'have a think and let us know' about his future.

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Guardiola was clear that Erling Haaland didn't need a rest after his summer off, and curiously said 'sooner or later' he has to take the step to train and play matches even with some muscular complaints on tour. On the other hand, Guardiola has launched a charm offensive in public to Ederson to try and get him to stay, repeatedly talking up the importance of his goalkeeper. He says Kevin De Bruyne has earned the right to decide his future, and has given glowing references of James McAtee and Nico O'Reilly.

There is certainly an element of the boss using the carrot for some players, and the stick others. Take Jack Grealish, for example. Everyone knows what happened last season and over the summer. Whatever went before, Grealish probably needed an arm around him on his