Twelve years after last being recognised as the leading men’s coach in the world, Pep Guardiola has regained his crown.

Third in voting on four occasions (in 2010, 2012, 2021 and 2022) and second in 2015 and 2019, the Manchester City boss came out on top in the category at The Best FIFA Football Awards™ ۲۰۲۳٫

The master tactician’s achievements with Manchester City in the first eight months of last year were recalled at Monday evening’s glittering ceremony in London. As well as lifting a fifth Premier League title with the Citizens and a third in a row, Guardiola secured the FA Cup for a second time before winning the club’s first UEFA Champions League trophy, the third of his career.

Before the year was out, he took home the UEFA Super Cup before adding the FIFA Club World Cup™ to that prestigious collection, albeit outside the eligibility period for the 2023 award. After stepping up to collect it, having picked up more votes than Italian duo Luciano Spalletti and Simone Inzaghi, Guardiola quickly brushed off the praise coming his way.

“We’ve won [a lot of trophies], but I’ve got to be honest and say that a lot of people have contributed to our success,” he said in an exclusive interview with FIFA. “I’m really happy with the season we’ve had. It’s been an incredible adventure. I’m happy we won again and I got a huge amount of pleasure out of being part of it.”

A treble-winner with Barcelona and again with Manchester City, the coach said his ability to stay at the pinnacle of European and world football is down to a natural progression.

“It goes without saying that everyone changes. I’m a different person, but I’m still the same. I’m more mature now and I do things differently.”

Guardiola was still at Barcelona when he collected the FIFA World Coach of the Year award in 2011, ahead of Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho. That accolade came after a year in which he took the Catalan club to glory in La Liga, the Supercopa de Espana, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Super Cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup. The only trophy to escape their grasp was the Copa del Rey.

“I’m pretty happy in general, happy with what I’ve achieved and happy to be here.”

Might that happiness have anything to do with the fact he has coached the best players in the world? After all, Guardiola has worked with two of the three The Best FIFA Men’s Player 2023 nominees, namely Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland, with Kylian Mbappe the odd man out.

“Erling is a great person and a wonderful player,” said the coach. “We won for a lot of reasons this year, and he was one of them.”

As for the Argentinian, whom Guardiola coached for four years at Barcelona – between 2008 and 2012 – he was named the world’s best men’s player for an eighth time, an achievement that left his former boss almost lost for words.

“Messi is the best player I’ve seen and will ever see,” commented Guardiola. “Just watch the videos of all the matches he’s ever played, and you’ll understand why. You just have to watch the kid play to understand why he’s different.”

The same could be said of Pep Guardiola, whose quality as a coach is reflected by the football his teams play, and creaking trophy cabinet he has amassed over the previous two decades.