How Pep Guardiola has fared against Real Madrid: meetings, wins and losses

Pep Guardiola, 53, faces Real Madrid again tonight in the second leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League, trailing 3-0 after a disastrous defeat in the first leg. It’s a matchup that has become a staple of the competition. They have met in semifinals in 2011, 2014, 2022 and 2023, the quarterfinals in 2024, the round of 16 in 2020, and the playoffs last year. Each of those ties has followed a different script and produced a different outcome.

Guardiola has consistently posed problems for Madrid. Since his debut as Barcelona’s first-team coach, through his spells at Bayern and now Manchester City, his record against Los Blancos is strong: 28 meetings, 13 wins (46.43%), seven draws (25%) and eight losses (28.57%).

From Barcelona to Bayern

Guardiola has faced Madrid most often with Barcelona, meeting them 15 times across four competitions: eight in LaLiga, two in the Champions League, three in the Copa del Rey and two in the Spanish Super Cup. His record is outstanding, with nine wins, four draws and just two defeats. Among the most memorable victories are the 6-2 win at the Bernabéu and the 5-0 rout at Camp Nou.

His first defeat came in the 2011 Copa del Rey final, when Cristiano Ronaldo headed home past Pinto. The second effectively sealed the 2011-12 LaLiga title for Madrid, with the Portuguese forward again on target. Even so, Guardiola’s Barcelona outscored Madrid 33-15 across those meetings.

The next chapter came with Bayern Munich, when they met in the 2013-14 Champions League semifinals. Madrid won the first leg 1-0 through Karim Benzema, and a hostile atmosphere was expected for the return in Munich. Then-CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge attempted to rally the team with a now-infamous line: “I think next Tuesday, when the second leg kicks off, even the trees in Munich will be on fire.”

Instead, Madrid delivered the heaviest defeat they have ever inflicted on Bayern, a 4-0 win powered by braces from Sergio Ramos and Cristiano Ronaldo. The aggregate score was 5-0 in Madrid’s favor, and they would go on to win the Champions League in Lisbon.

Five straight games without a win for Guardiola against Real Madrid

Guardiola’s most recent meetings with Madrid have come with Manchester City, all in the Champions League, with a record of four wins, three draws and four losses. However, he has failed to win any of the last five encounters.

Their first two-legged tie came in 2019-20, with City winning both games 2-1. The next, in 2021-22, produced one of the most memorable ties in recent history. Madrid recovered from an early 2-0 deficit in the first leg but still lost 4-3. A week later, trailing 1-0 deep into stoppage time, Madrid turned the tie around with two late goals from Rodrygo, before Karim Benzema sealed their place in the final from the penalty spot. Madrid went on to win the Champions League again.

The following year ended 1-1 in the first leg and a crushing 4-0 win for City in the second. In 2023-24, the tie was far tighter, going to penalties, where Andriy Lunin emerged as the hero to send Carlo Ancelotti’s side through to the semifinals.

Last year, the two sides met again in the playoffs, with Madrid advancing thanks to a Kylian Mbappé hat trick. This season, as Álvaro Arbeloa predicted given the frequency of recent meetings, Madrid have drawn City once more. After a 3-0 first-leg lead for Madrid, all that remains is to see whether Guardiola can find a way back in a tie that already looks steeply uphill.

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