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Pep has extremely strong ideas about what sort of players fit his system. Most of those ideals are quite far away from traditional player ideals of more traditional systems yet most of us, me included, are little bit stuck with those more traditional player types. These same ideals have followed him since his early days in Barcelona.

Keeper - Sweeper-keeper, needs to be great on the ball and be able to challenge outfield players in Rondo sessions. Pep doesn't mind odd blunder as long as you are always available for pass and have passing range of traditional six. He doesn't seem to care much about traditional handling ie how well keeper holds on to ball after making a save. Think of Ederson

Centerback - Needs to be excellent on the ball and be able to take the ball forward and movement to be always available for the pass. Also needs to have exceptional pace for the position and be able to cover by running with fastest strikers in the world. Traditional tackling or defensive positioning isn't that big of a deal. Think of Pique

Fullbacks - possibly the weirdest and most unintuitive positional ideal out of all of them. Fullbacks need to be able to cover for number 6 and be good passer of the ball. Needs to be able to dribble past his immediate opposition if isolated in 1-on-1 situation. None of the usual fullback traits tackling, long distance pace and crossing accuracy is necessery. Fullbacks of this mold are extremely hard to come by and that's why so much money is spend on the position. Almost regardless of who comes in there will be learning period since almost no team uses fullbacks this way. Think of Dani Alves

Number 6 - The underrated absolute key cog in Pep's system. Needs to be pretty good in just about everything. Needs to be able to cover for centerbacks, fullbacks and occasionally wingers in Pep's fluid system. Needs to be amazing ball winner as Pep wants to win ball back upfield. Long distance shooting is just about only thing he can have weakness on. Just complete football player. Think of Joshua Kimmich

Number 8 - Has to have amazing passing range first and foremost. Needs to have exceptional short distance movement and always, absolutely always, available for the pass. Has to be close to naturally two footed in order to be surprising on his passing and be able to spread the ball on either side reagardless of the situation. Also needs to be tricky. Needs to be master of La Pausa which narrows down the options. Doesn't have to have exceptional pace or be dominant in Steven Gerardesque fashion of just going to box in full steam. Think of Iniesta.

Wingers - Inside forwards really. Exceptionally pace and amazing in 1-on-1 situations. Needs to have the football IQ to make good decisions in tight spaces. Also needs to have decent shot. Doesn't have to be amazing at crossing the ball or particularily physical in winning the ball back. Think of Sterling

Striker - Versatility is the key here. Has to be great with ball at tight spaces and again fantastic decision making of when to pass and when to go for the goal. Needs to be very aware of tactics in final third and be able to play his role. Needs to be able to roam around and rip that defensive line into pieces Doesn't have to be dominant traditional number 9 with great pace and pinpoint shooting accuracy. Think of Messi.

Now I'm NOT saying that players wouldn't have the the qualities not-so-important. They do. I'm saying that these are the areas Pep place emphasis on and when we are thinking who he goes after these need to be taken into account. Truth is that if players have weaknesses in the areas mentioned, even if they are otherwise dominant players in their positions, Pep will not be interested.

Great Post Mate.

But, whilst you have dealt pretty fully with the players' football skills, their is also another important dimension that I think Pep holds in high regard ...A player's mental abilities.
VISION..The ability of a player to be able to see what is going on around him through 360degs. Pep once said his ideal team would consist of all midfielders, because they were the only players that usually had that ability.
STABILITY...of character. the ability to adhere to a game plan no matter what the situation of the game was...Never panic.
CHARACTER...Or a refusal to lose. The capacity to keep playing whatever the situation and never give up or let their head drop.
RATIONALITY...The ability to control emotions in an emotional game. We saw Fernie just smile and walk away while the Leicester players were losing it. We also see City players celebrating goals and wins yet have the abiltiy to drop the emotion and continue to the game or begin to focus quickly on the next game.
HUMILITY...Maybe too strong a word, but no matter the qualities of each individual player, the willingness to fight for the team cause. No divas, just cogs in a very well organised and successful machine.

Very good post. But I would suggest that in relation to 'defensive positioning' of the center backs, in Dias we have one of the best in the world at getting into the correct position at the correct time, even from the very start it was clear he was good a that element of defending.
That positional awareness is a natural ability in top center backs, and is very much so something we badly missed last season.

A players first touch is a trait of a pep player , all our players shine in this department. David Silva was probably the most outstanding but now Mahrez in particular , KDB , Gundo and Bernado have a world class first touch . Also our cbs Dias and Stones have an incredible first touch as does keeper Ederson. Work ethic to win back the ball also a trait of peps coaching . Peps style of coaching makes high quality players into world class players unlike no other coach on this planet .

He doesn’t like Africans remember.

Hard work.
Willingness to run for the press/team
Ability to pass and control the ball in tight situations
Have the ability/willing to change and adapt roles
Be comfortable on the ball in any area of the pitch
Accept that squad rotation is part and parcel of being in a successful team/club and learn the team is king, not individuality

A player that does all or most of these things will be a success under Pep

Mase wrote:He doesn’t like Africans remember.

Oh yeah, forgot that. Very important.

That is a great post NQD and also the replies.

Highlights that even if we decided to splash the cash for a Kun replacement, it may not be on Haaland, Kane or Mbappe.