Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca says each he and his Arsenal counterpart Mikel Arteta are “grateful” that that they had the chance to work with Pep Guardiola at Manchester Metropolis.

Each males had been assistant managers at totally different occasions throughout Guardiola’s reign on the Etihad and, talking forward of the London derby between Chelsea and Arsenal, Maresca stated:

“Most likely we each must be grateful as a result of we labored beside the one which I contemplate the very best supervisor on the planet. We’ve each been fairly fortunate to work with Pep.”

It’s barely ironic that Guardiola has basically mentored the managers of two of Metropolis’s greatest rivals however neither apprentice has outwitted the grasp fairly but.

Guardiola is eager to take younger coaches underneath his wing

Whereas the 53-year-old does prefer to have an old-hand across the teaching setup too, comparable to Brian Kidd, Juanma Lillo and Rodolfo Borrell, the Catalan has helped a number of former gamers to turn into coaches.

Along with Arteta and Maresca, Patrick Vieira has additionally hung out with Metropolis’s growth squad over time, and he would have had a number of conversations with Guardiola.

Who’s the following Metropolis coach who might turn into a supervisor?

Not many may have heard of him however Carlos Vicens is amongst Guardiola’s present group of assistants. The 41-year-old began out teaching youth soccer in Spain earlier than becoming a member of Metropolis in 2017.

After being an assistant supervisor for numerous youth groups, he was promoted to move coach of the Beneath 18s in 2020, serving to them win the FA Youth Cup quickly afterwards.

Simply 11 months after taking the place with the Beneath 18s, Guardiola made Vicens an assistant supervisor within the senior setup. The 41-year-old has spent the final three and a half years in that position.

Discover out who’s in Manchester Metropolis’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season right here