Pep is part of the pantheon of true greats but he's never tested himself in deep waters
Even some of the most successful managers of all time had spells at clubs in lower divisions or with clubs that routinely battle against relegation
ARSENE Wenger was an unlikely revolutionary.
There was plenty of scratching of heads after he was plucked from the unlikely surrounds of Grampus Eight in Japan to succeed Bruce Rioch at Highbury back in October, 1996.
Famously, one London newspaper went with the back page headline - 'Arsene Who?'
The Arsenal players didn't exactly welcome Wenger with open arms either.
Lee Dixon thought he looked like a geography teacher.
Ray Parlour did an impression of Inspector Clouseau and Tony Adams taunted Wenger over his standard of English and his knowledge of football.
But Wenger was the best thing to ever happen to Arsenal, and one of the best things to ever happen to English football.
In the Premier League era, his greatest rival for a long time was Alex Ferguson.
What he did with Manchester United was extraordinary and will never be matched.
But Ferguson was once considered not good enough for St Mirren.
During his career, Ferguson was sacked once - by the Scottish minnows in 1978.
He claimed wrongful dismissal against the club at an industrial tribunal but lost and was given no leave to appeal.
The Employment Tribunals document described Ferguson as "possessing neither experience, nor talent, nor any managerial ability at all".
That must go down as one of the most spectacular misjudgements of all time.
On the global stage, Ferguson is regarded as a giant too - up there with former Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni.
Trapattoni is one of five managers to have won league titles in four different countries.
And he is one of just two bosses to have won the three major trophies in European football - including the now defunct Cup Winners' Cup.
During his career, Trapattoni managed nine different teams at club level.
Eight of those were giants in their homelands of Italy, Portugal, Germany and Austria.
Only once did he manage a club of lowly stature - Cagliari in the 1995/96 season.
And Cagliari were the only club to sack him - showing him the door after a 4-1 defeat left them in 13th place in Serie A.
Run through a list of other managerial greats.
As well as building the modern Liverpool, Bill Shankly had spells with Huddersfield Town, Grimsby Town, Carlisle United and Workington.
When Celtic became the first British club to win the European Cup in 1967, Shankly cornered his old pal, Jock Stein, in a tunnel in Lisbon's Stadium of Light.
"John, you're immortal." Those were Shankly's words.
To many - including Shankly and Ferguson - Stein was an all-time great.
But he cut his teeth at Dunfermline Athletic and Hibs. He had to prove his worth.
Nobody will ever repeat what Brian Clough did in management.
In the globalised era, it's unthinkable that Derby County and Nottingham Forest could become champions of England.
It's even more unthinkable that Forest could win back-to-back European Cups.
Clough started his management journey with Hartlepool United. He also had a spell at Brighton. He learned the ropes the hard way.
That was the case with Jurgen Klopp in the modern era too, starting out with Mainz in the German Second Division.
Pep Guardiola lines up a putt during a break playing golf in Ireland PIC: Inpho
This is all to put in context the strange case of Pep Guardiola .
There are plenty who argue that he is the greatest manager of all time.
He is certainly a serial winner, a man who improves players, and has been hugely influential with his coaching and thinking about the game.
There are a handful of successful bosses who managed just one club - think of Bob Paisley and Zinedine Zidane - but most have seen the other side of the game.
Ferguson had his St Mirren, Wenger his Grampus Eight, Trapattoni his Cagliari etc.
Jose Mourinho, for the most part, was at big clubs, but Spurs and Roma aren't exactly giants who consistently hoover up trophies.
Carlo Ancelotti has had more Champions League success than any other manager.
But he found his spell at Everton quite a challenge - and he had a huge challenge in his first job too, at Reggiana.
Guardiola stands apart because of the clubs he's managed, as well as what he's achieved.
Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City are on the shortlist of the wealthiest clubs in the world.
Remember, at Barcelona, Guardiola inherited Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Eric Abidal, Carles Puyol, Samuel Eto'o and Thierry Henry from Frank Rijkaard.
And he took over a team that had been European champions two years before.
Then, at Bayern Munich, Guardiola inherited a side that had just won the Champions League. For good measure, they'd won the doublin Germany.
His job at Bayern was to win the competition again. That was something he failed to do in three attempts.
Guardiola brought Barca on by committing himself to their purist ball-playing tradition along with the belief that the team should have a strong Catalan accent.
In one of his first matches, eight of their starting XI were youth team products and still they won.
It's clear that Barcelona will always be his first and most enduring love, but City presented Guardiola with a great opportunity.
Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini had both won the Premier League with City so the onus was on Guardiola to make them a European force.
Up until a couple of years ago, they kept falling short - often dismally so.
During his sabbatical after leaving Barcelona, Guardiola immersed himself in German lessons, spending five hours a day studying the language.
By the time he arrived at Bayern Munich, he was able to conduct his first press conference through German.
That showed his thoroughness and professionalism. And he is refreshingly open to picking up knowledge and tips wherever he can.
Guardiola is particularly fascinated by the tactics of basketball. He watches it regularly, and talks to hoops' coaches a lot, and utilises the basketball approach of quick movement of play from one side to the other.
The word is that City will be the last club he manages, but wouldn't it be fascinating to see how he'd get on with a struggling club. Maybe he should suss out St Mirren...