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Italian football legend Luca Toni humorously accused Pep Guardiola of “ruining” the game and his own career during a dinner in Lombardy, where he was joined by Guardiola and fellow former Italian international Roberto Baggio.
The three are connected through their time at Brescia, where they all played.
While reminiscing over dinner, Toni quipped that Guardiola’s innovative tactics, particularly his use of the false nine at Barcelona, hindered his ability to find a club before retiring.
Toni joked, “Pep, you ruined football. With the false nine, I couldn’t find a team for four years.”
Guardiola laughed in response but defended his tactics, citing Erling Haaland’s remarkable goal-scoring record and the treble win with Manchester City.
He remarked, “I have it. Haaland, 60 goals. We won the treble with that striker, but the centre-forwards must be good! Understand?”
Guardiola is credited with popularizing the false nine role, where the striker drops deeper to create space, a strategy that was notably effective with Lionel Messi.
Toni concluded the playful exchange by urging Guardiola to move away from the false nine concept, advocating for traditional center-forwards.
This article was updated 2 mins ago
