Pep Guardiola moved to outright second on the all-time most successful managers list after Manchester City's penalty win over Sevilla in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday.
Sevilla's Nemanja Gudelj hit his crucial spot-kick against the crossbar in Athens to give Guardiola's side the trophy - his 36th title across spells with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Man City.
However, the Spanish mastermind will have to win 13 more trophies to catch up with Sir Alex Ferguson's impressive haul of 49 successful tournaments during his long tenure as one of the world's best managers.
The Scotsman's titles were earned across 39 years in management, but Guardiola has raced to 36 in just 14 active years on the sidelines, making his achievements all the more impressive - at an average of 2.5 champions per season, according to Marca.
Guardiola also made history by being the first coach ever to win the European Super Cup with three different teams, having won with Barcelona in 2009 and 2011, Bayern Munich in 2013 and Man City in 2023.
Long-serving Romanian manager Mircea Lucescu, currently at Dynamo Kyiv, has won 35 titles in his career, which goes back to the 1970s, putting him third on the list.
Valeri Lovanovski is in fourth place with 30 titles, just ahead of fifth-placed Ottmar Hitzfeld's 28 trophies.
Guardiola's career has seen him switch the predominant positions of players, most notably with Lionel Messi at Barcelona in 2009. It has often instigated great success.
He has also helped to nurture several young stars from youth success into the first-team, including Sergio Busquets at Barcelona, Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg at Bayern Munich and Phil Foden at Manchester City.
Something similar could happen to Cole Palmer after his header levelled the score against Sevilla in Athens - if he is not sold, with Guardiola insisting that he will not be loaned out to further his career away from the Etihad.
In a relatively short managerial career so far, Guardiola has achieved a wealth of success across Europe with three of the continents biggest clubs.
During four years with Barcelona, he won 14 trophies, including three LaLiga titles, two Champions Leagues, and the FIFA Club World Cup twice as well.
As Bayern boss between 2013 and 2016, he won three Bundesliga titles and the FIFA Club World Cup among seven trophies in Munich.
Since joining Man City in 2016, he has led them to five Premier League trophies, two FA Cups, four League Cups, two Community Shields, the Champions League in June and the Super Cup on Wednesday night. That totals 15 trophies across the last seven years - and with no ambitions to slow down.
Their quest for more silverware continues with their league game at home to Newcastle United on Saturday evening - a scheduling decision that Guardiola revealed he was less than impressed with in the wake of Wednesday's win.
In addition to success with his club, Guardiola has also received a nomination for an individual managerial award for his work guiding Man City to the Treble in 2023.
Guardiola faces competition from Italian pairing Luciano Spalletti and Simone Inzaghi for the UEFA manager award.
Spalletti led Napoli to their first Serie A title in 33 years, while Inzaghi steered Inter Milan to the Champions League final, where they lost to Man City.
jamdun009
483
Respect to SAF. But 39 years for 41 Trophies. PEP GAUDIOLA 14 YEARS MANAGEMENT & 36 TROPHIES. Is this a comparison? So Pep average 3 Trophies per year while SAF 1 per year. If Pep continues for another 10 years he will double SAF Tally. I rest my case. PEP GAUDIOLA IS THE UNDISPUTED GOAT OF ALL MANAGERS.
babdiklmno
253
furgie is a one team wonder, pep is the best in history
Koucdkmou
211
How come SAF gets better than Pep!!! SAF had 49 trophies in 39 seasons and PEP has 36 in just 14!!! GREATNESS OVERLOADED
Gubevol2
203
A car traveling at 300km/hr is faster than one traveling at 60km/ hr despite the slower car having traveled a longer distance. Pep needs just 3 more seasons with Manchester City to beat what Ferguson achieved in almost 30 years. who is more successful? Pep needs 15 years of failure to be second to Ferguson.
Ayuba_Samuel
113
I heard people saying Pep hasn't coached a small club before. Bruh if you're good, you're good. And Pep is good thus, cannot be afforded by small clubs. Simple as that. He has continuity, that's why he's always at the top. Mourinho had coached Madrid, Chelsea, Tottenham, Inter Milan and even Man United. All these, are top clubs and with various degree of success. There was no continuity, so he had to survive. Ancelotti had coached Chelsea, Madrid(twice), Inter Milan, PSG with a certain degree of success but no continuity cause there's no identity. Who will mention again. Conte, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Tottenham all big clubs. But Guardiola has maintain a level of continuity and therefore he's employers trust him with their chest of gold. He has never being sacked, never being queried but always trusted. He's the goat of coaches. He's more or less like SAF, if not greater. Salud Guardiola. You're an inspiration