It’s been eight years since Manchester City showed Pep Guardiola’s arrival at the Etihad Stadium, but the Catalan’s reign could soon come to an end.
Guardiola has led City to countless league titles and a remarkable treble in 2023, but his contract expires in 2025. There has been no motion for an extension and he suggested, after clinching the 2023-24 league title, that a way out may only be on the cards.
“The truth is that I’m closer to leaving than staying [after next season],” said the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach. “We’ve spoken to the club, I feel like I need to stay now. There’s next season left and we’re going to talk about the season. But in 8 or nine years, we’ll see. “
City have noticed that rivals Liverpool are leaving behind a longtime manager, and the Reds have appointed Arne Slot as Jurgen Klopp’s successor. If the Manchester club find themselves in a position, it is possible that some men are in the running, and Mirror Football has chosen a closer. Take a look at some potential suitors.
The City Football Group probably didn’t have a good fortune plan when Michel took over in Girona, but his good fortune in Catalonia means its inventory is on the rise. The 48-year-old has a lot of caliber of play. Having played almost two hundred league games for Rayo Vallecano, he has now shown his quality on the bench.
The Spaniard has won promotion to La Liga with each of the three clubs he has managed, but Girona’s form this season has been the real peculiarity. After passing the first part of the crusade against Real Madrid, they slowed down a bit, but the third position is still enough for the club to triumph for the first time in the Champions League.
Who will Manchester City box with if Pep Guardiola leaves? Write your review in the comments section
Manchester City’s owning organization will have two clubs at the top of Europe next season, and Michel’s feat will be reversed. An 81-number comeback from a team in their second season in La Liga is a phenomenal job, and all eyes will be on their ability to start next season with European football added.
Maresca, another City-linked manager, led City’s academy until their 2020-21 Premier League 2 triumph before moving to senior club football. He joined Guardiola’s coaching after a brief stint as Parma coach, only to return when Leicester called him up.
Not only did the Italian win promotion with the Foxes, but he did so as a second-division league champion. Leicester’s 97 problems were enough to propel Ipswich Town into the most sensible position, and only two champions have suffered more problems in the last 10 seasons. .
A word of caution, though. Vincent Kompany has also been touted as a long-term City boss after his Burnley top the league with 101 points 12 months ago but were relegated.
There are indications Arsenal. No that Arteta would be willing to leave the club for City, but there’s no denying that he would be a popular pick if the champions managed to reach an agreement.
Arteta, another teammate of Guardiola’s, joined City’s coaching staff in his first season with the Catalan, staying there for 3 seasons or more before taking charge of Arsenal in December 2019. He won the FA Cup in his first season in north London, while Arsenal finished second. in the City League in each of the last two seasons.
Had Guardiola left the club in 2019, Arteta would have taken the opportunity to take over, but now he could possibly finish what he started with the Gunners.
The boss of Sporting CP, Amorim, is one of the coaches in Europe, who is talked about whenever an important task arises. Part of that is his ability to break the dominance of Porto and Benfica to win two Primeira Liga titles in four full seasons.
West Ham have played an ambitious game for the Portuguese, who are also connected to Liverpool and Barcelona, but have opted to stay in Lisbon. At least for now, some other successful year at the José Alvalade Stadium would see their inventory build up. even more.
After a clever part of a decade under Guardiola, City may prefer a young manager who can stay that long. Amorim, who turns 40 next year, would do the trick.
He may not be the apparent candidate, but he is the one who knows how Guardiola works. Xavi played a significant role in Guardiola’s first good fortune as coach at Barcelona and is now a free agent after his training spell at Camp Nou ended.
In his first season in charge at the Camp Nou, Xavi led Barca from ninth to second place. Things have taken a step further after a full pre-season, with the Catalan club winning La Liga last season by a 10-point margin, Real Madrid’s resurgence this season means that comparable issues across the board are not enough.
Xavi left Barcelona for the first time, but was persuaded to stay, but was still fired. Many will be curious to know what he is capable of in a less chaotic environment, City would also be much less familiar to someone who has spent his entire European career. club career with his childhood team.
DON’T give up on replays! Join our petition to keep the magic of the FA Cup alive!
Join our new WhatsApp network and get your fix of Mirror Football content. We also offer our network members special offers, promotions, and advertising from us and our partners. If you don’t like our network, you can check it out at any time. . If you’re curious, you can read our privacy notice.
Receive the FREE Mirror Football newsletter with the most sensible headlines of the day and get the news straight to your inbox