Leeds United manager Sam Allardyce has made another extraordinary Pep Guardiola claim ahead of his side’s match against Manchester City.
Guardiola’s side will welcome Leeds to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, knowing a win will put them four points clear at the top of the Premier League table and pile the pressure on title challengers Arsenal.
While City are fighting to win a third successive league crown, their next opponents are fighting for Premier League survival.
Leeds find themselves 17th in the standings with five games left to play, with goal difference the only thing keeping them afloat.
Earlier in the week the Yorkshire side sacked manager Javi Gracia after just 11 matches in charge, and replaced him with veteran English boss Sam Allardyce.
The 68-year-old has plenty of experience, with Leeds being the ninth top flight side he has managed, and appears to be full of confidence before his side’s trip to Manchester.
Allardyce makes another bold claim
On Wednesday the former Bolton, West Ham and England boss made headlines when he argued that no manager, not even Guardiola or Klopp, is ahead of him “in football terms.”
Now, in an interview with Sky Sports, Allardyce has claimed that he would could lead a squad as talented as City’s to silverware.
When asked if he thought he could get City to challenge for the treble, Allardyce said:
“Absolutely. The players make you a really good manager and good coach, and then your job is to be able to communicate with those players.
“We all have our own pressures, but to deal with the high-quality players that they have is a dream come true for you as a coach.”
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While Guardiola himself has previously argued that players are more important than managers, Allardyce seems to be giving Pep little credit for his tactical innovations and ability to improve players.
Chelsea’s struggles this season prove that just because a squad is packed with quality players, it doesn’t mean that any old manager can walk in and be successful.
It’s difficult to tell whether Allardyce is being genuine, or whether he is just making these claims so to direct attention away from his players ahead of what promises to be a tough match.
