I have faced some great coach like Mourinho, Klopp and Ancelotti but Arne Slot did something I’ve never seen in my coaching career”: Manchester City Coach Pep Guardiola names ONE thing Arne Slot did which he has never seen in his professional football career.

Pep Guardiola, a manager widely recognized for his tactical brilliance and ability to handle the toughest challenges in modern football, has encountered some of the game’s best minds. From José Mourinho’s psychological tactics to Jürgen Klopp’s intense gegenpressing and Carlo Ancelotti’s efficient pragmatism, Guardiola has faced and triumphed over the top tacticians in the sport. However, following Manchester City’s unexpected 2-1 defeat to Feyenoord in the UEFA Champions League, Guardiola found himself offering high praise for an unexpected figure—Arne Slot.

Slot, the innovative coach of Feyenoord, devised a strategy that left Guardiola both perplexed and impressed. In his post-match interview, Guardiola said, “What I saw from Slot was beyond anything I’ve ever encountered on the touchline. The man is a genius. He did something so simple, yet so devastatingly effective, it caught us completely off guard.”

Guardiola elaborated on the move that set Slot apart. According to the Manchester City manager, Slot used a distinctive rotation of midfielders and wingers that disrupted City’s pressing game and neutralized their build-up play. “Slot created overloads in wide areas, but not in the way you’d expect. Instead of pulling players to the wings, he had his wingers invert and midfielders drift wide simultaneously. It was almost like playing chess with a grandmaster—you think you’ve got him cornered, but then he counters with something you’ve never prepared for.”

The tactic was so successful that even Guardiola, known for his ability to make mid-game adjustments, admitted to struggling against it. “We’ve seen teams try to disrupt our press before, but this was something entirely new. It wasn’t just tactical; it was psychological. My players were second-guessing every decision, and that hesitation cost us the game.”

Guardiola’s comments underscore Slot’s rising status as one of Europe’s most promising young managers. It’s not often that a coach of Guardiola’s stature admits to being outsmarted on the field. Though the defeat was a rare setback for City, it highlighted the emerging talent from the Eredivisie and Slot’s exceptional approach.

For Guardiola, the experience serves as a reminder and a challenge. “You always learn in this game,” he reflected. “And today, I learned something from Arne Slot that I will never forget.”

As the dust settles, one thing is clear: Arne Slot is no longer an underdog. He is a manager to watch, and following this tactical masterpiece, the football world will undoubtedly keep a much closer eye on Feyenoord.