Pep Guardiola leaves: How losing 'greatest innovator' and 'biggest draw' will impact Manchester City's recruitment plans

City announced on Friday that Guardiola would leave at the end of the season after a trophy-laden decade at the club, during which time he further established himself as one of the greatest managers of all time.

The 55-year-old has won six Premier League titles, the UEFA Champions League, three FA Cups, and five Carabao Cups with City.

The announcement of the Catalan's departure comes after City lost out on the Premier League title as their draw to Bournemouth handed Arsenal - and former Guardiola assistant Mikel Arteta - the league title.

And Guardiola's exit could mean City struggle to attract the biggest names in football, according to former England international Hargreaves.

"I do think one of the biggest pulls of having a coach like that, and I had it with Sir Alex [Ferguson] at United, is players want to go play for him," Hargreaves told TNT Sports. "So players would have come just to play for Pep. Not just for City, but to play for Pep.

"They're losing that now so people might say: 'I might go play for somebody else.' But Pep was the biggest draw in football so losing that is going to affect their recruitment, I'm almost certain."

Since arriving at City in 2016, Guardiola has gone onto not only transform the success of the club, but the footballing world as a whole.

His emphasis on possession and playing out from the back has seeped into the fabric of coaching around the globe, with even youth teams adopting Guardiola's philosophies.

"I don't think we've ever seen a coach have an impact on the football pyramid or the world of football, nobody's ever had it," Hargreaves said.

"You get under-10 teams where the goalkeeper drops it and playing out and everybody's trying to play football. And yes, you see a lot of accidents at times but I think the impact he's had on the game is to improve the game."

On top of that, Guardiola has become famous for his ability to adapt his style to keep an edge on his opponents and City at the top of the game.

Between the false nine, central midfielders as centre-backs and the inverted full-backs, Guardiola has found ways to stay one step ahead of his competition, Hargreaves explains.

And that's why Hargreaves calls him the "greatest innovator I think we've ever seen in the game".

"The detail that he brings to the game, I don't think anyone's ever seen," he said. "Pep's not doing what everyone else is doing, Pep's tweaking the game all the time.

"We've been very fortunate in this country to have Sir Alex [Ferguson], Arsene Wenger and [Jose Mourinho], but I think Pep, technically, took it to another level with the detail. And that's what all young coaches are aspiring to be, but I think that's almost unattainable because what he has, he had in his eyes as a player, I saw it. It's very unique."

Enzo Maresca, a former Guardiola assistant and who left his role as Chelsea manager in January, has been rumoured to be in line to replace Guardiola.

Although Hargreaves admits that "you have to" move on with life after Guardiola, he believes it will be "virtually impossible" to emulate his success.

"Change is constant. You think about losing Sir Alex and Jose [Mourinho] and Arsene [Wenger], and you have to evolve," he said. "It's hard to imagine a league without him because of the impact he's had. But he's come and he's left City and the Premier League in a better place than when he found it.

"I just don't know how you fill his shoes. You hope he's inspired that next generation of coaching."

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