The Catalan has presided over the most successful period in the Club’s history, lifting 10 trophies and winning every competition on offer in England during his five years at the Etihad Stadium.
He has set record after record in that time to leave an indelible mark on both City and English football, building a legacy which will stand the test of time.
Indeed, the way in which Guardiola had rewritten the history books has been just as impressive as the brand of football which has delivered so much success.
Here, we take a look at the numbers behind the 50-year-old’s City career, detailing the remarkable statistics and milestones which have underpinned his reign to date*.
All-time record
Guardiola has won more games than any other manager in the Club’s history, passing Les McDowall’s record with the recent victory over Chelsea to record his 221st win.
He has taken charge of 305 games, leaving him with a hugely impressive win percentage of 72.5% in all competitions and boasts a goal difference of +450, having scored 740 times and conceded 250.
Topping the table
City have been the Premier League’s dominant team under Guardiola, winning the title in three of the five seasons since he was appointed in the summer of 2016.
And our superiority is further evidenced by the metrics which measure a variety of performance areas.
We have scored more goals (480), taken more shots (3452) and had more shots on target (1259) than any other team in the competition since the start of the 2016-17 campaign, with Liverpool in second place in each of those categories.
We also edge out Jurgen Klopp’s men to lead the way for possession (66.98%) and successful passes (118, 457), whilst Chelsea (85.69%) are our closest rivals in terms of passing accuracy, with Guardiola’s men recording 88.54% across his five seasons.
These numbers underline the exciting attacking philosophy the Catalan has implemented at the Etihad, but we have also been the leading Premier League team in several defensive areas.
Since 2016-17, we have faced the fewest shots (1380) and conceded the fewest goals (159), again coming out on top over Liverpool.
Premier League records
Guardiola’s City hold no fewer than 10 Premier League records having hit a number of milestones in each of our three previous title-winning campaigns.
In 2017-18, we were utterly dominant as the boss got his hands on the trophy for the first time.
Our 100-point tally is the largest in the competition history and the 106 goals we scored is more than any other side has ever managed, whilst our +79 goal difference is also the best the Premier League has seen.
We won 16 games away from home that season to set another record and our 19-point advantage over second placed Manchester United remains the biggest winning margin.
The 32 victories over the course of the campaign and a run of 18 consecutive wins are also Premier League records, though both are shared with Liverpool’s 2019-20 championship-winning team.
In 2018-19, the title race went to the wire as we pipped the Reds by a point on the final day, with a record-breaking run of form at the Etihad proving crucial.
Our 18 home wins was the most achieved by any team as we equalled Roberto Mancini’s 2011-12 side, as well as Chelsea (2005-06) and United (2010-11), with Liverpool doing the same in 2019-20.
We also recorded the fewest draws that season (2), which is another milestone we share with Tottenham Hotspur (2018-19) and Sheffield United (2020-21).
One record was achieved as Guardiola clamed his third Premier League crown last season.
In one of the most demanding campaigns ever, City won 12 consecutive away games between December and May to write our name into the history books again.
Guardiola is also the proud holder of an individual record, as the first person to win the Premier League Manager of the Month award four successive times, which he achieved between September and December 2018.
English football records
The 2020-21 season was particularly punishing for City, who played three times a week for most of the campaign, but more silverware was collected as we lifted the Premier League and Carabao Cup again, setting several English football records along the way.
A winning streak which lasted 82 days between December 2020 and March 2021 included 21 victories in all competitions, which is a record by a top-flight team, whilst we also posted the most consecutive league wins by a top-flight team from the start of a calendar year (13).
Guardiola’s men achieved a record run of consecutive away wins in all competitions for a top flight team (20), a Club and English record run of consecutive unbeaten away matches (23) and an English record run of consecutive away league wins (12) during the season.
Another first was established when we won all nine of our competitive fixtures in January 2021, the most by any team in the top four tiers of English football in a single month since the formation of the Football League in 1888.
*Stats correct as 5 October 2021.
