November 4 – Guardiola is Pepped-up

SINCE Barcelona legend Pep Guardiola took over the managerial reigns at the Camp Nou in the summer he’s not done a bad job, with goals galore and Los Cules sitting pretty at the top of La Liga. It was a different story today in 2001 though, as the Spanish midfielder failed a drugs test.

During the previous summer Guardiola had left the Catalan club for Italian side Brescia after 11 seasons at the heart of the Barca midfield where his trophy haul included six La Liga titles and a European Cup.

A product of the planter barcelonista, the star-studded Barcelona academy that has recently produced the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Lionel Messi and Luciano Becchio, Guardiola was revered as a legend during his spell at the club and notched up 47 caps for the Spanish team and also turned out for the Catalonia national side whenever he could.

After leaving Spain for pastures new, Guardiola struggled to get to grips with Serie A. After a league match with Piacenza on 21 October he failed a routine drugs test and a second positive test for nandrolone followed after Brescia took on Lazio, which bought the midfielder a four month ban.

Pep protested his innocence over the ban and in October 2007, after six years of appeals he eventually cleared his name and all charges that had lead to the ban.

Not that this did him any good at the time. The ban had put the brakes on his career as the defensive midfielder struggled upon his return to Serie A with Roma. In 2003 he jetted out to the pre-MLS retirement home that was Qatar, picking up some nice pay cheques from Al-Ahli before calling it a day after a ten game spell at Mexican side Dorados de Sinaloa.

In 2007 Pep was given the job of Barcelona B coach and after a successful campaign landed the top job following the departure of Frank Rijkaard. The former Barca skipper wasted no time making an impact, telling Ronaldinho, Deco and Giovani Dos Santos to all sling their collective hooks. With Barca sitting at the top of the pile in Spain it looks as though he’s not letting down the adoring Barca public.

See a Guardiola highlight reel, complete with baffling quotes from the likes of Jorge Valdano below and check out what else was going on today here.