Who changed the Premier League more?

Added: 2026-05-25

[00:00:00]Sir Alex Ferguson and Pep Guardiola are undoubtedly the two most successful managers in the history of the Premier League. Separated by three years, Ferguson dominated the '9s and 2000s and Guardiola the 2010s and 20s. Their legacies are inarguable and to debate who is better would be a hopeless task.

[00:00:19]But through a specific lens, it's not impossible to compare them. So this video will make the argument that Guardiola's impact on English football is greater than Ferguson's.

[00:00:37]So first let's define what we mean by impact on football. Now in this case we mean that literally not football in the broader sense but specifically football as it is played on the pitch. Now were it the broader definition then this argument loses validity. Ferguson remains incredibly influential. Today's managers emulate him whether intentionally or otherwise in their media appearances, their man management style, their leadership. But for this argument, it's tactical influence that we are primarily concerned with.

[00:01:05]However, in order to make that argument, we first need to understand the tactical identity of the two coaches. Ferguson largely used a 442 throughout his time at Manchester United with some notable exceptions. But even when he didn't, the focus was on fast and direct wide players that made his sides devastating on the counterattack. It would be wrong, however, to say that Ferguson was particularly wedded to one tactical philosophy. As many of his ex-players have pointed out, the tactical work and training sessions were generally run by Ferguson's assistant coaches like Carlos Kirro, Renee Mullenstein, and Brian Kidd. Ferguson's focus was on individuals, improving them, and finding the right balance to get the best out of them on the pitch. If managers are defined by their strengths, then one of Ferguson's was his flexibility. He survived 26 years at Manchester United precisely because his teams evolved with the times. He faced many challenges during his tenure, but Jose Mourinho's arrival at Chelsea was arguably the greatest in terms of the tactical evolution in the league. Mourinho's 4-33 was the beginning of the end for the 442. But this change eventually resulted in one of Ferguson's great teams, the 2008 Manchester United team with Rooney, Ronaldo, and Tez making a devastating front three. That team won a Premier League and Champions League double, but it might not have existed had Mourinho not popularized the formation that it was based in. Now, Pep Guardiola, on the other hand, has been something of a trends setter. In contrast to the lightning fast counterattacks that defined Ferguson's time, Guadiola is known for implementing shorter passing structures with the intention of retaining possession of the ball and therefore being both more likely to score because his team has the ball and less likely to concede because his team has the ball. When he arrived in England, there was a degree of skepticism about whether Guardiola's tactics would translate. English football wasn't archaic, but it was still largely defined by physicality and pace. There was a genuine belief that Guardiola's Barcelona and Bayern Munich sites would not have been as successful if they'd had to do it on a, as the saying went, cold, rainy night in Stoke.

[00:03:13]But ultimately, the level of control they exhibited enabled his teams to dominate games well enough to consistently challenge for titles. And soon enough, English football started trying to emulate his success. Now, by the end of the 2010s, most elite teams were attempting to reproduce the Guardiola approach. Even lower tables, previously famed for their physical traditional approach, were trying to play out from the back. Guardiola's greatest Premier League rival was Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool. And their rivalry is often built as a complete stylistic contrast between Klopp's frenetic heavy metal football and Guardiola's more controlled approach. But even Klopp sought to introduce some of Guadiola's control to his faster paced style. For all of his successes in the Premier League, it's hard to argue that Ferguson ever had a similar effect. His leading rivals, Arson Wenger and later Mourinho, just weren't his tactical disciples in the same way that Guardiola's have been.

[00:04:11]Now, having said that, Guardiola has somewhat adapted to English football.

[00:04:15]Edison's arrival at City gave his team the opportunity to play more direct football if they wanted to. He's also utilized center backs as fullbacks and a more traditional center forward in Erling Holland. Again though, these have been tactical trends set by Guardiola that the rest of the league has quickly followed. So while Ferguson is of course an incredibly influential figure, Guardiola's influence on football itself is arguably greater. Although given that he's unlikely to remain at Manchester City for another 16 years, we'll probably never know whether that influence could have extended to a Ferguson length era. If you like this video, please consider subscribing to the channel. The Athletic is home to some of the world's best sports journalists, including David Ornstein, Daniel Taylor, Olly K, Amy Lawrence, and James Horn Castle. With the latest transfer news and insight on every Premier League football story that matters, the athletic.com puts you inside