Sam Allardyce has claimed that no manager is ‘ahead of him in football terms’, and Pep Guardiola has backed up the veteran boss, hailing another veteran manager Neil Warnock. Allardyce has made a surprise return to the Premier League with Leeds United, being given just four games to save the Yorkshire club from relegation. The 68-year-old certainly sounds confident about doing so, claiming that even the biggest names in the Premier League are not better managers than him.
‘Far too many people think I am old and antiquated, which is so far from the truth,’ Allardyce said in a press conference on Wednesday. ‘I may be 68 and look old but there’s nobody ahead of me in football terms, not Pep (Guardiola), not (Jurgen) Klopp, not (Mikel) Arteta, so it’s all there with me. I share what they do and I do what I do but in terms of knowledge and depth of knowledge, I’m up there with them – I’m not saying I’m better than them – but certainly as good as they are.’
Guardiola will be Allardyce’s first opposite number as Leeds boss when they go to Manchester City on Saturday, and Pep has backed up the former England manager. ‘He’s right,’ said the Spaniard. ‘Look what happened with Neil Warnock at Huddersfield. These incredible managers. It looks like the young managers, with the tactics and whatever… but they are really good, they help us be who we are. They have incredible experience.’
Guardiola had referenced Allardyce straight after his City side beat West Ham 3-0 on Wednesday night, ahead of them welcoming Leeds to the Etihad on Saturday. ‘Every game is hard. The day was so cold and windy,’ he said. ‘We didn’t play bad but our structure wasn’t great. We didn’t score in the beginning but we pushed on. I’m really pleased with five games left. This was one of our games in hand and we used it well. On Saturday at 3pm we face Sam Allardyce.’
Warnock has earned praise from Guardiola for his efforts at the foot of the Championship with Huddersfield, where he has dragged the Terriers out of the relegation zone since arriving in February. Sam Allardyce has boldly compared himself to a string of top Premier League managers and it is easy to see why he and Roy Hodgson have agreed to another farewell tour. Struggles of young managers make it easy to understand why these veteran bosses have been given another chance.