He has taken on less-heralded players, like Brazilian Dani Alves and Mali’s Seydou Keita from Sevilla, and the former Barcelona youth team player Gerard Piqué from Manchester United. He brought in 20-year-old Sergi Busquets, who played for Guardiola in the third division, demonstrating the vitality of the team's farm system, which begins shaping players as young as 10. Eleven of Barcelona's 25-member squad come from that programme.

Almost three-quarters of the goals have been scored by Samuel Eto’o (15), Lionel Messi (10) and Thierry Henry (8). “We needed discipline and his style of football, the Barcelona way,” said Henry. Guardiola's success is not so much a revolution as a return to the team's roots.