For all his brilliance in moulding Barcelona into one of the most iconic club sides in history, one criticism consistently levelled at Pep Guardiola during his four years in charge was his activity in the transfer market.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Martin Caceres, Alexander Hleb, Dmytro Chygrinsky and Keirrison cost more than €110m (Dh533m) yet were considerable flops in Catalonia, while the €34m (Dh164m) lavished on Cesc Fabregas seems exorbitant given the midfielder’s unimpressive time at the club.
Maybe stung by the experience of Chygrinsky, Guardiola’s blind spot also seemed to be in the centre of defence, an issue the club are only really starting to clean up now.
However, perhaps aided by Bayern’s excellent front office, Guardiola looks like he’s learnt his lesson in Germany. This summer, to an already formidable group, he has added: Robert Lewandowski and Sebastian Rode (on free transfers), Mehdi Benatia, Pepe Reina, young Spanish left-back Juan Bernat from Valencia and, if reports are to be believed, Xabi Alonso could well be a Bayern player by Monday.
This recruitment has come at a cost of around €45m (Dh218m), but that has been offset by the sales of Toni Kroos and Mario Mandzukic, earning the club something in the region of €50m (Dh242m). From a financial and football point of view it’s been a fantastic window.
Perhaps the club should have done more to hold on to Kroos who, theoretically, could have formed the basis of their midfield for the next five years. But Kroos’ wage demands, married to Guardiola’s vision of him as a player to be rotated and the fact when Real Madrid ask, they tend to get, meant his departure was difficult to prevent.
Mandzukic is an excellent striker but his style never fit Guardiola’s system and, like Mario Gomez before him, the writing was on the wall for a long time.
Although Bayern blitzed the Bundesliga, the defence of their Champions League crown was desperately disappointing. Thrashed 5-0 by Madrid, it exposed their fallibility, namely a brittle defence.
Benatia may not be a household name but was among the top three centre-backs in European football last season and for Bayern to get him for €30m (Dh145m), €20m less than what PSG paid Chelsea for David Luiz and the same price Dejan Lovren moved from Liverpool to Southampton, is remarkable.
Manuel Neuer may be the best goalkeeper in the world but everybody needs to be kept on their toes. Meanwhile, Bernat provides further depth on the left, allowing David Alaba to take a breather.
It’s one thing identifying your weaknesses, it’s another going out and remedying them at minimal expense. But Guardiola has done exactly that.
