Should you ever happen to go for a beer with Pep Guardiola, tread carefully. Things might start off OK, discussing Oktoberfest or how to wear a rollneck with trainers, but inevitably conversation would turn to Barcelona’s glory years, at which point you would laud a famous European title or decisive clásico, and Pep would quietly place down his glass, straighten his rollneck and depart. Perfectionists always find flaws even in what others might consider their best work; to Guardiola, his pinnacle at Barcelona was never in beating Manchester United or Real Madrid, but on a December night in Yokohama when his team carved Santos to pieces.
Eight days before the 2011 Club World Cup final, Barcelona travelled to the Bernabéu in La Liga. For the past three years they had been an obscenely great football team, one of the best ever, dominating Spain and Europe. Carles Puyol led like an army general, Dani Alves’s flagrant disregard for defending was impossible to read, Xavi hadn’t misplaced a pass since 2008 – and they had Lionel Messi. They could be monotonous – tiki, taka, tiki, taka – but part of the thrill was not knowing when it would end or what they’d invent when it did.
Barça had started the season, however, with several underwhelming draws and now their critics were circling – lose to Real Madrid and the title race would be over before Christmas. Real scored after just 23 seconds, but Barça recovered to claim a vital 3-1 win over José Mourinho’s side. The result transformed the mood as only a clásico could. They flew to Japan with a spring in their step and romped to a 4-0 win over Qatari side Al Sadd to set up a Club World Cup final showdown with the Copa Libertadores champions, Santos.
Santos were an all-Brazilian mix of battle-hardened experience and outstanding young talent like the future internationals Danilo, Ganso and their teenage talisman with the mohawk, Neymar. Months earlier Neymar had caught the attention of the world with a mind-bending goal which won the Puskas award, and another sumptuous Neymar finish sparked their 3-1 semi-final win over the J-League champions Kashiwa Reysol. One report declared Santos “had announced their arrival at the Club World Cup in the most spectacular style imaginable”.
It would have been a perfect week for Barcelona, too, but for the leg-break suffered by David Villa against Al Sadd. The injury was expected to see either Alexis Sánchez or Pedro brought into the team for the final, but Guardiola’s love of central midfielders got the better of him: Sergio Busquets, Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Thiago and Cesc Fàbregas all started – and they passed Santos to death.
From the start Alves advanced and Messi roamed deep to swarm midfield with red and blue – later Guardiola would reject the idea he had pioneered a new system. “I don’t think we were playing 3-7-0. That’s just how we play. We try to control midfield and exploit the space.” Santos were overwhelmed. Each time they closed a gap another opened. It was peak Pepball, keeping the plates spinning until the opposition were mesmerised into submission, and it took Santos about 17 minutes to break.
Ten seconds before the opening goal, Barça were ambling around the right side. Xavi prodded a pass to Alves. The Brazilian rolled it lazily back to Messi, who retreated under pressure. As the defenders let up he span and drilled a pass to Fàbregas, loitering on the corner of the box. Suddenly Barcelona came alive as Santos scrambled to defend.
Fàbregas stabbed a first-time pass inside to Xavi whose control was majestic: he pulled the ball down with one flick of his right boot, let it bounce, then guided a perfect pass through white shirts to Messi scurrying into the box. Messi took two touches on the run before lifting a sublime half-volley over the onrushing goalkeeper, Rafael Cabral, with just the right weight to tempt a defender into a failed lunge as it crossed the line.
That burst of lethal precision epitomised all that Guardiola had designed in a performance he would later claim was his team’s closest to perfect football. Xavi, Fábregas and another clever Messi finish rounded off a 4-0 win. Although Santos might have pinched one on the break, Barça could, perhaps should, have scored four more.
“My players were like artists,” Guardiola said after the game. “Whatever they envisaged in their minds they were able to do on the pitch. It was an incredible performance.”
Santos could only stand and admire. “Barcelona were impossible to stop,” said the 19-year-old Neymar, who would depart for Catalonia 18 months later. His coach Muricy Ramalho was equally effusive. “Barcelona are the greatest team in the world. No team can live with them. They’re unbeatable. Losing 4-0 to them is no disgrace.”
It was Guardiola’s 14th trophy at the club, and one of his last: Real Madrid ultimately ran away with La Liga and Guardiola stepped down at the end of the season citing fatigue – it must be tiring work pursuing perfection. He will not stop striving to get there, but he may never come as close as that night in Yokohama when his team played like artists.
