Hristo Stoichkov, the legendary footballer of Bulgaria and Barcelona, questioned the knowledge of Pep Guardiola, his former teammate.
Stoichkov gave an interview for Mirror in which he said, “Everyone knows that Barcelona was already a well-groomed team built by Frank Rijkaard. Those players would achieve all those amazing results with or without Pep. He had players like Henry, Deco, Ronaldinho, Marquez, Puyol and Valdes, it was a really crazy team.
“Pep’s work was easy, as he knew perfectly well the infrastructure of the youth system. All Pep needed was to add players like Iniesta, Pedro and Messi to that generation.”
Many consider Guardiola the creator of the famous Barcelona generation, and he is also known as one of the best coaches in the history of football. Stoichkov has a slightly different opinion.
Guardiola led Barcelona from 2008 to 2012 and in those four years won three league titles, two Spanish Cups and two Champions League titles, as well as two European Super Cups and two World Club Championships.
Meanwhile, Stoichkov wore the Barcelona jersey from 1990 to 1995, and then from 1996 to 1998.
