Pep Guardiola: Decoding his Carabao Cup winning campaigns
What's the story
Pep Guardiola is one of the finest tactical brains in modern-day football. He has been a successful manager everywhere in his career across Spain, Germany, and England.
He has won the major honors with Manchester City, bagging the historic treble last season.
Apart from winning the Champions League and Premier League, Guardiola has also won four Carabao Cup crowns.
Here's more.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Guardiola has won 15 titles with Manchester City since joining the club in 2016.
Apart from all the big crowns, the Spaniard has also secured four Carabao Cups (2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21).
However, City were knocked out early this season in the competition by Newcastle United.
In the 2022-23 season, they suffered a quarter-final exit. Guardiola will want to add to his four honors.
2017-18
Guardiola's maiden Carabao Cup title with City in 2017-18
City had a brilliant 2017-18 season under Guardiola. The Spaniard won his maiden Carabao Cup title while also winning the PL crown. They won 32 matches, registered four draws and suffered two defeats.
The Citizens won the league by 19 points over Manchester United.
City defeated Arsenal 3-0 in the Carabao Cup final. They bowed out of the FA Cup in the fifth round.
Carabao Cup
Breaking down their 2017-18 Carabao Cup campaign in numbers
City started their Carabao Cup campaign with a tough 2-1 win over West Brom in the third round.
It went onto the penalties in the fourth round and quarter-finals against Wolves and Leicester City respectively.
In the semi-final, they defeated Bristol City followed by their win over Arsenal (final).
Leroy Sane was City's leading scorer (three goals), while Bernardo Silva amassed three assists.
2018-19
Guardiola won four trophies with Manchester City in 2018-19
It was a sensational 2018-19 season for Manchester City as they won four titles under Guardiola.
They completed the domestic treble by bagging the PL, FA Cup, Carabao Cup and the Community Shield.
They defeated Chelsea on penalties to lift the Carabao Cup.
City amassed 32 wins, registered two draws and suffered four defeats in the PL.
They bowed out of the UCL quarter-finals.
Carabao Cup
Breaking down City's 2018-19 Carabao Cup campaign in numbers
Manchester City defeated Chelsea in the final on penalties to lift the 2018-19 Carabao Cup crown.
They defeated Oxford United followed by a win over Fulham in the first two rounds.
City prevailed over Leicester City in their quarter-final clash on penalties before smashing Burton Albion in the semi-final.
Gabriel Jesus led the scoring charts with five goals, while Riyad Mahrez provided three assists.
2019-20
Third Carabao Cup crown for Guardiola
The 2019-20 saw City win only the Carabao Cup as they finished second in the PL while missing out on the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
City finished with 26 wins, three draws and suffered nine defeats.
They lost to Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-final while bowing out of the UCL quarter-final against Lyon.
City defeated Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup final.
Carabao Cup
Breaking down City's 2019-20 Carabao Cup campaign in numbers
City began their Carabao Cup journey with a 3-0 win over Preston in the third round.
Followed by victories against Southampton and Oxford United before reaching the semi-finals.
They defeated Manchester United in the semis over two legs before beating Villa in the final.
Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling netted three goals each while Kyle Walker, Phil Foden and Silva amassed two assists each.
2020-21
Fourth consecutive Carabao Cup title for Guardiola's Manchester City
Manchester City won the PL and the Carabao Cup in the 2020-21 season. The Citizens amassed 27 wins, registered five draws and suffered six defeats.
They were 12 points ahead of second-placed Manchester United.
They won the Carabao Cup crown beating Tottenham Hotspur in the final.
City bowed out in the FA Cup semi-final while they lost the UCL final against Chelsea.
Carabao Cup
Breaking down City's 2020-21 Carabao Cup campaign in numbers
City's 2020-21 Carabao Cup journey started with a 2-1 win over Bournemouth in the third round.
They defeated Burnley (3-0), and Arsenal (4-1) before trumping Manchester United in the semi-finals.
The Citizens defeated Tottenham in the title clash.
Aymeric Laporte, Sterling, and Foden scored two goals each in the tournament. Foden also amassed two assists.
Zack Steffen finished with joint most clean sheets (3).
Record
Joint most Carabao Cup titles for a manager
Guardiola has won four Carabao Cup titles as a manager. He is tied at the top for most titles with Brian Clough, Jose Mourinho and Alex Ferguson, who have also clinched four titles.
However, no other manager has won the Carabao Cup title in four consecutive seasons.
Overall, Guardiola has featured in 31 Carabao Cup matches, winning 26 of them and suffering five defeats.