Thierry Henry spots undervalued Pep Guardiola trait key to Man City success

Thierry Henry has spoken about an underappreciated aspect of Pep Guardiola’s success at Manchester City. The 46-year-old became a Premier League legend during his time at Arsenal, establishing himself as one of the best players in the world, before joining Barcelona in 2007. His second season at the Camp Nou saw him coached by Guardiola as the Catalan giants won the treble.

Henry, who recently became France Under-21 manager, has often spoken with reverie about his time playing under Guardiola. Last month, the Frenchman admitted that the Manchester City boss had ‘opened my eyes’ to how football could be played, even if Henry initially questioned his role in the Barcelona team.

Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast, Henry admitted that, during his playing days, he worried that Guardiola's detailed plan for each game was unsustainable. However, Guardiola has enjoyed continued success, both at City and Bayern Munich, and Henry pointed to an undervalued part of his management style - which included a subtle dig at podcast host and ex-City defender Micah Richards.

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“He was a freak on everything and he controls everything,” Henry said. “You think that won’t last, but it does last and every time he manages to make it work.

“Whenever you speak about his teams, you never remember who left. At one point, big teams used to care when big players left.

“You never hear, can you remember when (Vincent) Kompany left, yeah they suffered for two years without Kompany, they suffered without (Sergio) Aguero, they suffered without David Silva, they suffered