As Pep Guardiola prepares for his final two games in charge of Barcelona, irrespective of the result, he can look back in satisfaction at having overseen one of the most successful periods ever in the history of the club.
Since taking over as the Barcelona manager in 2008, Guardiola has won 13 trophies in all – three La Liga titles, two Champions League trophies, one Copa del Rey, three Spanish Supercups, two UEFA Super Cups and two FIFA Club World Cups. In fact, in 2009 the club won the most number of official titles, six – the La Liga, Copa del Rey, Champions League, Spanish Supercup, European Supercup and Club World Cup – as Guardiola became the first manager in history to win six honours in one calendar year. This season the club has won three trophies, and could bag a fourth – the last of Guardiola’s era – when they take on Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey final on May 25.
Though his legacy goes beyond mere numbers, we take a look at some of the amazing, interesting and unique records the club has achieved in the course of these four years with Guardiola at the helm.
2008-09
Barcelona became the first Spanish side to achieve a treble, winning the La Liga, Copa del Rey, Champions League. They scored 158 goals in 62 games in all official competitions.
That year Guardiola became the youngest manager to win the Champions League. He was only 37 years old when Barcelona beat Manchester United 2-0 in the final in Rome.
2009-10
In 2009, Barcelona won the La Liga title with a record points total of 99, although Real Madrid can break that if they win their final game of the season against Mallorca on Sunday. Jose Mourinho’s side currently have 97 points from 37 games.
Barca registered the most wins in a league season – 31, a record they shared with Real Madrid in the same season. Their only defeat in the league came against Atletico Madrid. That season they remained unbeaten in the league at Camp Nou, winning 18 and drawing 1 game.
During the season Guardiola became the first Barcelona manager ever to win four successive el clasicos against Real Madrid. In total, the Catalan took charge of 15 el clasicos, winning nine of them.
By winning the Club World Cup, Barca became the only team to have won all the official competitions they have played in at least once, from the Copa Macaya (1902) to the Club World Cup (2009).
After winning every trophy they competed for in 2009, however, Barcelona suffered their first elimination under Guardiola in January 2010 - against Sevilla in the Copa del Rey.
Also in January 2010, Guardiola became Barcelona’s longest serving Spanish coach, overtaking the record previously held by Josep Samitier.
2010-11
As Barcelona won their third league title in a row, they set the club record for most away wins in a La Liga season – 14 games, becoming the first team to score in all away matches in a league season, finishing with 49 goals in 19 games, also a club record. That season they lost away from home only once, drawing the four remaining games, thus staying unbeaten away from home in La Liga for 23 consecutive games - from February 14, 2010 to April 30, 2011 - with 18 wins and 5 draws.
The club went on their longest winning run in La Liga – of 16 games – en route to their second consecutive title, finishing with a goal difference of +74. (Barcelona had the same goal difference in 2009-10 as well.)
In fact, Barcelona went on an unbeaten run of 28 games in all competitions, with 23 wins and five draws overall in 17 games in La Liga, 5 in Copa and 6 in Champions League.
Guardiola lost his first ever final that season as Barcelona were beaten 1-0 by Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey. Cristiano Ronaldo scored the only goal for in the 103rd minute during extra time, giving Mourinho his first title with his new club in his first season in charge.
2011-12
After winning the Spanish Super Cup and European Super Cup, Guardiola had more trophies to his name than any previous manager in Barcelona’s history, overtaking Johan Cruyff and his 11 trophies.
Barcelona became the first club to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League for the fifth consecutive time. However, they suffered a shock defeat to Chelsea, the club against which Guardiola had his worst record. Of all the clubs he faced in all competitions as Barca manager, he failed to register even a single victory against only one club – Chelsea, failing to beat them in four attempts.
In Guardiola’s final game at Camp Nou, as Lionel Messi led the team to a 4-0 win over Espanyol, Barcelona maintained their record of having beaten every other team in the league at least once during the season – something they managed every year since Guardiola took over. They also ended with the best home record of the season, with 17 wins, one draw and one defeat, scoring a massive 73 goals and conceding 11.
Barcelona under Pep Guardiola
• La Liga (3) - 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11
• Spanish Supercup (3) - 2009, 2010, 2011
• Champions League (2) - 2008-09, 2010-11
• UEFA Super Cup (2) - 2009, 2011
• FIFA Club World Cup (2) - 2009, 2011
• Copa del Rey (1) - 2008-09
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