According to reports, Mikel Arteta, the manager of Arsenal, called Pep Guardiola before eliminating Real Madrid and praised him. Guardiola, who had Arteta as his assistant at Manchester City for a year and a half, once said about this collaboration: “It was an extraordinary period.”

When Arteta accepted the offer to manage Arsenal, this collaboration ended, and he has now excelled in this role. Guardiola’s influence on players and assistants who are now prominent managers in top-level football is undeniable.

Here are some of these figures:

Xavi Hernandez
Xavi played with Guardiola at Barcelona between 1998 and 2001. This relationship deepened when Guardiola became Barcelona’s manager in 2008 and chose Xavi as the main playmaker on the field. Xavi later became a manager, and Guardiola’s style is evident in his football philosophy. He managed Al-Sadd in Qatar for nearly four seasons and returned to Barcelona in 2022 but was replaced by Hansi Flick. He is now preparing to return to management.

Xabi Alonso
This Basque midfielder was Guardiola’s key playmaker at Bayern Munich between 2014 and 2016. After managing Real Sociedad B, he joined Bayer Leverkusen and took the team to unprecedented heights, a team that was previously in Bayern’s shadow. His style is based on attacking football, and he is now a candidate to manage Real Madrid.

Thierry Henry
Henry only worked with Guardiola during Barcelona’s sextuple season (2008-09). After retirement, he started coaching and managed Monaco, Montreal Impact, and the Belgian national team. He also coached the French national team at the Paris Olympics and won a silver medal. He is currently without a team.

Tito Vilanova
Tito and Guardiola were teammates at Barcelona’s academy. Vilanova then served as Guardiola’s assistant for four years at the senior team. In 2012, he became Barcelona’s manager and achieved great success, such as winning La Liga with 100 points, but cancer ended his life in 2014.

Domenec Torrent
Torrent was Guardiola’s assistant in all the teams he managed. After Manchester City, he managed New York City, then Fluminense, Galatasaray, and now Atletico San Luis.

Cesc Fabregas
Fabregas played under Guardiola in the 2011-12 season, Guardiola’s last year at Barcelona. Having also worked with Mourinho, he is now the manager of Como in Italy and, with his brilliant performance, has placed the team on the verge of survival in Serie A and is recognized as a coaching phenomenon.

Vincent Kompany
The legendary Manchester City captain worked with Guardiola between 2016 and 2019. After managing Anderlecht and Burnley, he is now the manager of Bayern Munich. Although they were eliminated by Inter in the Champions League, they are leading the Bundesliga. Guardiola sees him as a future candidate to manage City.

Enzo Maresca
This Italian midfielder worked at Manchester City’s academy and was Guardiola’s assistant in the 2022-23 season, which ended with a Champions League victory. He then managed Parma, Leicester City, and now Chelsea.

Javier Mascherano
Mascherano joined Barcelona as a midfielder in 2010, and Guardiola turned him into a center-back. They worked together for two seasons. Mascherano coached Argentina at the Paris Olympics and has now received an offer to manage Inter Miami, where Messi, Suarez, Busquets, and Jordi Alba play.

Gabriel Milito
The Argentine defender worked with Guardiola between 2008 and 2010, but injuries diminished his role. He later managed Estudiantes, Independiente, O’Higgins, Argentinos Juniors, and Atletico Mineiro, reaching the Libertadores final but was dismissed.

Sylvinho
This left-back played with Guardiola at Barcelona in 2007 and played under him in Guardiola’s first season as manager. He started coaching with Lyon, then managed Corinthians, and is now the coach of the Albanian national team, which participated in the last Euros.