The four-part Amazon series A Beautiful Obsession, which begins streaming Wednesday on Prime, offers an unfiltered look at Pep Guardiola's final two seasons at Manchester City, including his divorce, the departure of Kevin De Bruyne, and tensions with club leadership. The documentary, controlled and filmed by City, does not shy away from the difficulties of the 2024-25 campaign, when the team suffered nine defeats and one victory in 13 games.
Guardiola's Personal Struggles and Team Slump
In the first episode, Guardiola discusses his marriage breaking down after a 2-0 Champions League defeat to Juventus on 11 December 2024, which was City's seventh loss in 10 games. He says, “I’m fucking divorced from the most beautiful woman on your planet. I love her unbelievably, but we lost the passion. How do you play football, because you are paid? Or because of something inside? Where is the passion?”
Manuel Estiarte, City's director of first-team operations and a close friend of Guardiola, reveals in the second episode that he told the players about the divorce to explain Guardiola's behavior. Estiarte says, “I said to the team: ‘Please, you have to understand, you’re not playing with a coach who can be a bit impulsive, intense, sometimes a bit up and down. You’re seeing a human being. He’s getting a divorce.’ It was necessary for the team not only to visualise Pep as a manager but for the first time as a human being.”
Boardroom Anger Over Team Selection
The documentary also captures the anger of City's chair, Khaldoon al-Mubarak, over Guardiola's decision to make 10 changes for the 2-0 Champions League loss to Bayer Leverkusen. Khaldoon says, “To pick an entire new [outfield] team in a game this important is probably one of the lowest points we’ve had. I can’t speak to him – I’m so angry.” CEO Ferran Soriano adds, “Our attitude with Pep Guardiola should not be too negative. But it shouldn’t be too kind or accommodating either. This is his mistake this time.”
Guardiola later tells the team, “I leave my life, my divorce and my family is away, and everything for all of you. And what do you give back?” This follows a scene where Guardiola is shown bearing cuts and scratches when facing questions in November 2024.
Walker Confrontation and De Bruyne's Exit
In the first episode, Guardiola is close to tears after Kyle Walker leaves in January 2025, following an error that led to a penalty in a 2-0 loss to Liverpool. Guardiola questions why the players did not hold Walker accountable, saying, “If captains first, then the other ones, for example [feel] that there’s a problem, tell me. It’s not going to change the love I have for all of you. I’m sorry.”
The second episode covers De Bruyne's departure, as Soriano tells Khaldoon, “Kevin gets the respect he deserves as the greatest player in the modern history of City.” Guardiola reveals De Bruyne broke down in his office, and the Belgian is shown crying when asked what he will miss most, saying, “My kids don’t want to go.”
The series concludes with Guardiola winning the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, bringing his trophy tally to 20 in a decade, and City finishing second. Guardiola says, “Life should not just be about football. It’s too much to be honest.” The documentary ends with his rebuild complete, offering a fitting send-off before the start of his next chapter.
