Pep Guardiola explains the reason for the divorce: "We lost the passion"

BarcelonaThe premiere this Wednesday of the documentary A beautiful obsession(A beautiful obsession) on Amazon Prime Video has opened the door to a small part of Pep Guardiola's intimacy. The former Manchester City coach is the absolute protagonist of the documentary, which accompanies him throughout his last two seasons at the helm of the team. And, although a good part of the film focuses on Guardiola's sporting work and the club's challenges, the cameras also show part of his private life. One of the most notable moments of the documentary is the speech Guardiola gave to the players in the locker room after the 2-0 defeat against Juventus in the Champions League on December 11, 2024.

"I want to tell you something: I'm going to divorce the most beautiful woman on the planet. My wife, my ex-wife. Do I love her? Of course. Does she love me? Yes, but we've lost our passion. For many reasons. Where is your passion? Whatever you do in life, do it with passion. I don't want good players, I want players with passion," Guardiola says during the conversation with the players recorded in the documentary. At that time, the divorce was not yet public. In fact, the information emerged later, in January 2025. Since then, however, the coach has never publicly spoken about his breakup with Cristina Serra, with whom he shared 30 years, 10 of them married, and with whom he has three children in common.

Clashes with the players

During the documentary, directed by Kevin McDonald, some key moments of Guardiola's footballing career in recent years are also seen. The film shows, for example, a clash in the locker room between Guardiola and then-captain Kyle Walker, after a defeat at Anfield against Liverpool. Walker complained that the coach reproached him for things in "every damn meeting"; Guardiola responded by pointing out that perhaps it was "because he was captain". That same day, later, Guardiola became emotional and cried when addressing the team following the same defeat.

Another of the standout scenes is the moment when Kevin De Bruyne cries upon learning that the club will not renew his contract, and how Guardiola showed signs of visible exhaustion during a run of poor results, including another clash after the defeat against Bayer Leverkusen. Likewise, the documentary captures Guardiola's relationship with the club's board and the moment he communicated to them that he was leaving his job. "I want to leave, I am very tired and I feel very alone", he admitted after a defeat against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League.