Manchester City are preparing for Pep Guardiola’s exit after Sunday’s Premier League match against Aston Villa.
Sources have told BBC Sport that the managerial great is expected to leave Etihad Stadium at the end of the season.
City maintain Guardiola has a contract for next season and are hopeful he will remain as manager.
However, work towards his anticipated exit is under way at the club, with members of staff of the understanding he will leave.
It is understood members of the squad are also anticipating his departure after the final game of the season againt Villa, while the club have turned their attentions towards how best to mark the tenure of their iconic boss.
Former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, who worked under Guardiola at City, is the front-runner to replace the 55-year-old.
Guardiola has led City to 17 major trophies – and 20 in all – including six Premier League titles, the Champions League, three FA Cups and five EFL Cups during his 10 years at City.
The club’s greatest boss is widely regarded as one of the best managers of all time, and could yet still cap his stellar spell at Etihad Stadium with a seventh Premier League title, having already won the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup this season.
Speculation about the manager’s future has been rife for months, with the question about his tenure at Manchester City often coming up in news conferences.
He was asked on Friday whether the following day’s trip to Wembley for the FA Cup final would be his last visit there. “No way,” he said, reminding reporters he had “one more year” on his contract.
And in a interview with BBC Sport before Saturday’s FA Cup final, when asked if he will still be at the club next season, he replied: “Yeah.”
The ex-Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss added: “I am here, I have a contract.”
A record-breaking tenure
Guardiola signed an initial three-year contract with City in February 2016 to take over from Manuel Pellegrini for the start of the 2016-17 season.
Though he finished that campaign without a trophy for the first time in his career – and also went trophyless last season – his City side have otherwise largely dominated English football during his reign.
City are the only team to reach 100 points in a Premier League season, doing so in 2017-18, when they also set the record for the most goals scored in a campaign, with 106.
In 2022-23, City became only the second English team in history, after rivals Manchester United in 1998-99, to complete the Treble – winning the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the same season.
Guardiola’s City later became the first team to win the English league title four seasons in a row with their triumph in the 2023-24 campaign.
The former Spain international then signed a two-year contract extension in November 2024, until the end of the 2026-27 season.
A trophy-laden career
Guardiola joined City after three seasons at Bayern Munich, where he won three consecutive Bundesliga titles and two German Cups.
He started his managerial career at Barcelona in 2008, forming one of the best club sides ever – winning three straight La Liga titles, two Champions Leagues and two Copa del Reys before taking a year’s sabbatical following the 2011-12 season.
Defensive midfielder Guardiola spent most of his playing career at Barcelona, winning six La Liga titles, two Copa del Reys and the 1991-92 European Cup.
He captained Spain to gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and subsequently made 47 appearances for the senior national side. He retired from professional football in 2006.
‘This season is extraordinary’ – Guardiola
Should his departure be confirmed, Guardiola will follow several of his key signings during his era at City in exiting the club.
Captain and Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva, as well as England defender John Stones, recently confirmed they will both leave when their contracts expire this summer.
Belgium midfielder Kevin de Bruyne, who now plays for Napoli, left Etihad Stadium when his contract expired last summer, while Brazil goalkeeper Ederson was sold to Turkish side Fenerbahce in September.
Former England right-back Kyle Walker joined Burnley in July, having spent the second half of last season on loan at AC Milan.
The signs have certainly pointed to a possible departure in the past week.
On Friday, the manager was asked whether the following day’s visit to Wembley Stadium would be his last – Guardiola said “no way” because he has “one more year [on his contract]”.
But the playful way in which he delivered that line and his quick exit from the room raised a few eyebrows and only added to the mounting speculation.
City won the FA Cup for the third time under Guardiola by beating Chelsea on Saturday and, perhaps significantly, he took a picture holding the trophy with each member of staff one by one.
The cameras also caught him wistfully looking into the distance when the trophy celebrations were taking place on the pitch – was he searching out a family member in the crowd or taking in his final moments at the national stadium?
City have not made any comment on the latest developments and head to Bournemouth on Tuesday, where Guardiola is certain to be asked about his future once again. Will he provide a definitive answer or point to “one more year” as he has done throughout this season?
Guardiola took charge of his 1,000th career game as manager back in November and may bring down the curtain on Sunday by leading City out for the 593rd time – the highest number of games for which any manager has taken charge of City.
It would be a poetic way to bow out, whether the title is won or not.
BBC
