Wayne Rooney admitted that Sir Alex Ferguson‘s exploits with Aberdeen may edge him ahead of Pep Guardiola in greatest ever debate.
Ferguson departed Manchester United in 2013, bringing to an end his hugely successful and lengthy tenure. He left as club’s most successful ever manager winning 13 Premier League titles and two Champions Leagues. Prior to arriving at Old Trafford, Ferguson led Aberdeen to legendary heights, claiming European honours. He also remains last man to topple Real Madrid in European final, further adding to his legacy.
Guardiola’s achievements since arriving in management in 2008 have catapulted him into greatest ever conversation. He’s dominated with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and now Manchester City. The Catalan has just won his fourth league title on trot – something Ferguson never accomplished. Guardiola has also matched Scot’s treble achievement, doing so in 2023 but Rooney still put his former boss narrowly ahead.
Rooney on Ferguson’s Legacy and Guardiola’s Impact
The new Plymouth manager said in an interview with ESPN Brasil: “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. What he did at Aberdeen was incredible.
“And you’d ask the question could Guardiola do that at team like Aberdeen? There’s questions. There’s debate. I think Guardiola for his era is of course the best. He’s changed the way football is played worldwide. But yeah for me Sir Alex what he achieved in the game is incredible.”
One of the criticisms of Guardiola is that he’s always worked with world-class players, taking over Barcelona side that boasted Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta. The Catalan though has revolutionised the way the modern game is played and Rooney joked that he would “walk” to Manchester if he could become Guardiola’s assistant.
“If Pep Guardiola comes in and asks me to be his assistant you’d walk there” Rooney told the Stick to Football podcast. “You see what Mikel Arteta is doing now and I strongly believe a lot of that is from learning what Guardiola was doing. So it depends on what the situation is.
For me best manager is Pep. You look at how he adapts. How they [City] are playing now is not the same. They were playing differently four years ago.
