The unequal distribution of wealth and resources in elite European club football has meant a story repeated and revisited at this time of year.
In the Champions League and in the big five leagues, the same characters face each other over and over again in their latest bids for glory. Depending on your point of view, this can be tricky, predictable, amusing or exhausting in many ways.
A look back at Pep Guardiola's career reveals that the Manchester City boss has faced old foe Jose Mourinho more than anyone else - 25 times. Jurgen Klopp may have closed that gap to one by the middle of this month, but is at level 22 with Mauricio Pochettino for now.
One person missing from that list of the usual suspects is Diego Simeone. Atletico Madrid's trip to face City in Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final at the Etihad Stadium will be only the fourth time it has stood in the dugout opposite Guardiola.
Two of the finest strategists of his generation, two deep-contrast styles and two charming, charming figures. Are they about to start making up for lost time?
Why did Guardiola and Simeone meet only once in La Liga?
If you had to choose two giants of La Liga coaching in the 21st century, you would probably be drawn to Guardiola and Simeone.
However, they spent very little time together in Spain's top flight, with Cholo taking over at Atl̩ti in the middle of 2011/12 РPep's final campaign being in charge of Barcelona.
They met in February 2012, when Atletico made life generally uncomfortable for illustrious opponents, before Danny Alves slotted home at the end of a Classic-Guardiola move to open the scoring.
Radamel Falcao drew a draw from the second-half corner, and Victor Valdés was forced to make a crucial save on either side of an early Lionel Messi free-kick, which sealed the point.
All three goalscorers received yellow cards during 90 minutes - three of the 11 bookings ended in a fracture.
Mourinho's Real Madrid ended Barcelona's Liga dominance that season, although Guardiola was comforted by Copa del Rey success. The Catalan coach had reached the end of the road after five years at Camp Nou Helm in a spectacular – but tense – camp, and just needed a break.
Meanwhile, Simeone launched his own silverware collection as Atletico beat Athletic Bilbao in the Europa League final.
In the context of any rivalry between Crufianism's greatest disciple and his fiercest opposition, that was until Bayern Munich drew Atlético Madrid in the 2016 Champions League semi-final. Simeone, Guardiola and two extraordinary groups of players immediately showed us what we were missing.
🤯 Saúl ÑÃguez en 2⃣0⃣1⃣6⃣ @saulniguez 🆚 Bayern#UCL pic.twitter.com/1EN691zmNR
— Liga de Campeones (@LigadeCampeones) October 14, 2021
What was so incredible about Guardiola's Bayern vs Simeone's Atletico?
There is a list of unexpected tactical calls that Guardiola has made since his previous Champions League success with Barcelona in 2011, which are often cited as examples of "overthinking" and moves that could hurt his team's prospects. were fatal.
Nothing like it was against Atletico in 2016. Thomas Müller raised eyebrows when he started a 1-0 first leg defeat at Vicente Calderon, but last season's final against Chelsea hardly slots into the galaxy-brain region of not choosing a holding midfielder.
A formidable opponent for Bayern, there was a combination of incredible intensity and some pretty lousy luck. Atletico rebuked their opponents during the opening stages and were rewarded with a brilliant solo effort from Saul Niguez.
Bayern controlled the bulk of the competition, but by the time they returned to Bavaria after hitting the post from Fernando Torres, they could inflict more losses.
An intoxicating contest took place at the Allianz Arena, with Bayern completely dominating the first half and Xabi Alonso's deflected free-kick leveling the tie. But Jan Oblak saved a Thomas Müller penalty shortly before half-time and, early in the second period, Antoine Griezmann seized a precious away goal from David Alaba's mistake.
Robert Lewandowski nodded back to Bayern in the night as they battered the Atletico field relentlessly, taking a brief break to concede a penalty saved by Manuel Neuer from Torres.
Atlético had blocked more shots (nine) than they had taken during 90 minutes (seven), as Bayern inspired them. The hosts made 34 attempts in total; Oblak scored 11 goals.
The combination of the Slovenian goalkeeper and the often scattered body in front of him meant a 2–2 draw on aggregate, with Simeone's team leading on away goals. Guardiola, inexplicably, had lost to Bayern in their third consecutive semi-final of the Champions League.
What should we expect from Man City vs Atletico Madrid?
The two managers now have separate teams and one has changed clubs. Still, one element that makes this game so intriguing is that Simeone and Guardiola are so committed to their chosen style, even allowing Atlético's ability to go past five today.
Naturally, some of the possible clues stem from those epic encounters six years ago.
"Some moments they press high. I looked at the first 15, 20, 25 minutes against Man United and United couldn't breathe," Guardiola said after the quarter-final draw.
Atletico's attacking efforts against United may have reminded them of the period that saw Saul's crucial goal against Bayern.
Simeon's men are renowned for their defensive flexibility, which means that their ability to attack in a suffocating fashion can sometimes be overlooked. To cut it short during the second leg in Munich, Guardiola went against his usual convention and instructed his players to hit Lewandowski with a quick and straight pass.
It was a successful move and then helped Bayern play the game on their own terms, but can they do the same with their famous strikerless City?
This could mean an increasingly rare start at centre-forward for Gabriel Jesus, or perhaps Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden being instructed to score darting runs from behind, though that spot disappears when Atleti becomes that familiar defensive back. returns to the shell.
Sterling and Foden could also be scheduled for similar duties, with what promises to be very different games against Liverpool in the Premier League and FA Cup, each blockbuster game in its own right, followed by midweek Atletico encounters over the weekend. .
Has Guardiola calmed down and has Atletico's main strength become a weakness?
According to Marti Perarnau's biography Pep Guardiola: The Evolution, Guardiola himself took all the game analysis of the first leg against Atlético, leaving his trusted match analyst Carles Planchert to deal with the Bundesliga encounter with Borussia Mönchengladbach in the middle of the games. .
An emotionally wrought pep then proceeded to tear the shirt under his jumper into heart-breaking pieces of the other leg.
Guardiola appears to have softened in relative terms during his time at Manchester, but the extent to which this is true will certainly be tested by a punitive program that does not have the same release valve as the Gladbach game - a lesser result. 1-1 draw.
His intense character and ability to mold a team in his image is a great deal of common ground between Simeone and Guardiola. However, following the La Liga success of last season, it could be argued that this is the most non-Simeon Atletico of his tenure.
They are fourth in the table, with 36 goals as they provide the most punchy defense of any side in the top eight. Atlético scored only 25 runs throughout the last season, and Oblak's sharp decline in form has led to some decline this fall.
Yet he and his teammates were back at their best in a competition where they have an uncanny knack for finding a way to take United down. The big test is whether they can do it against a far more accomplished team in Manchester.
If Guardiola is accused of going back to type when the dust settles next week, it will probably be in the analysis of how it all went wrong.
The lessons of the past and the pressures of the present are like a heady cocktail for City Boss and promise yet another gripping chapter in a story largely unwritten between the two modern greats.