When the final whistle blows, most managers are either celebrating a hard-fought victory or nursing the sting of defeat. But for me, the real action often begins after the game—in the quiet moments shared over a glass of wine with a fellow tactician.

My first real encounter with Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola came during his debut Premier League season in 2016-17. I was managing West Brom at the time, and City had just beaten us at home. After the match, I sent my assistant Dave Kemp to invite City's staff for our customary post-game drink. When I finally joined them after finishing my press conference, there was Pep, sitting at the table with a glass of wine, chatting away with my entire staff as if he'd known them for years.

As anyone who knows me will tell you, I insisted he stay for dinner too. Over plates of food, we talked about his early impressions of English football—and he never once glossed over a question, no matter how small. Even the caterers were impressed by how warm and engaging he was with them.

Later that same season, when we traveled to the Etihad for an evening kickoff, Pep found me after the match. We shared another drink and meal, and during our conversation, he started talking about his time at Barcelona. I mentioned I'd never been, but that it was on my personal to-do list. Without missing a beat, he asked for my email address and promised to arrange everything for my wife Debs and me to experience the city's finest offerings.

Now, I'll admit I'm terrible with technology—I didn't even have an email address back then. So I gave him Debs' instead. The following weekend, after another Premier League match, I came home to find that Pep had sent her a personally compiled to-do list for Barcelona. The note said to contact him before we planned our trip, just in case he was in town.

I've never been good at accepting generous invitations, so we never made that trip to Barcelona. But maybe someday we will—and if we do, I hope Pep is around to show us around. I stepped away from management in 2020, and while I didn't see him as often after that, we've stayed in touch. That's just the kind of person he is—a world-class manager with a world-class heart.