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Manchester City\u2019s head coach Pep Guardiola greets fans at the top of the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Crystal Palace in Manchester, England, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ian Hodgson)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
MANCHESTER, England \u2014 Pep Guardiola confirmed Friday what Manchester City fans had been fearing. The club\u2019s most successful manager is leaving, bringing to a detailed a trophy-laden, 10-year spell wherein he established City as a force in Europe and altered the face of English soccer.<\/p>\n
Guardiola had a yr left on his City contract but will take charge of his final game on Sunday against Aston Villa within the Premier League.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t ask me the explanations I\u2019m leaving. There isn’t a reason, but deep inside I comprehend it\u2019s my time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
City said Guardiola will develop into a world ambassador and it was naming its newly developed stand at Etihad Stadium after him.<\/p>\n
Enzo Maresca \u2014 the previous Chelsea manager who was previously assistant to Guardiola at City \u2014 is the favourite to tackle the daunting task of filling the Catalan\u2019s shoes after a decade of unprecedented dominance.<\/p>\n
Since joining City in the summertime of 2016, Guardiola has led the Abu Dhabi-owned team to 6 Premier League titles and a primary Champions League crown in 2023.<\/p>\n
He won 17 major trophies including a domestic double this season of the English League Cup and the FA Cup. He has won 35 major titles across his coaching profession including at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.<\/p>\n
City was by far his longest job in management, having never previously stayed greater than 4 years in a job.<\/p>\n
\u201cI is not going to train for some time,\u201d the 55-year-old Guardiola said. \u201cI feel I might not have the energy that’s required to day by day \u2026 with the expectations to fight for the titles.\u201d<\/p>\n
Guardiola set latest benchmarks; City became the primary team to win 4 straight English leagues and the primary to amass 100 points in a single season in 2018. The next yr City was the primary team to win the domestic treble of the league, FA Cup and League Cup in the identical season.<\/p>\n
His biggest achievement was leading City to the last word treble in 2023, winning the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup \u2014 matching Manchester United\u2019s feat from greater than 20 years earlier in 1999.<\/p>\n
He also delivered to England a variety of soccer \u2014 a possession-based approach that began with playing the ball out from the goalkeeper or defense \u2014 that ended up being mimicked across the country, from kids\u2019 teams at grassroots level to rivals within the Premier League.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe unique approach that he brings to his coaching has allowed him to always challenge the accepted truths of our game. It’s the explanation that within the last 10 years he has not only made Manchester City higher \u2014 he has also made football higher,\u201d City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said. He added it was the \u201cright answer\u201d for Guardiola to walk away now.<\/p>\n
While he goes out on one other trophy-winning campaign, this was the primary time in his profession that he has gone two seasons without being crowned league champion. City was also eliminated from the Champions League before the quarterfinals within the last two years.<\/p>\n
City said Guardiola\u2019s latest role would see him give technical advice to clubs in its ownership group.<\/p>\n
\u201cPep\u2019s legacy is extraordinary and its true impact shall be higher assessed by Manchester City historians of the longer term,\u201d chief executive Ferran Sorriano said. \u201cIf there’s something harder than winning, it’s winning again. It requires incredible persistence, resilience and the humility to begin again yearly, with the identical energy, time and again. That is what Pep did.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Guardiola will go down as considered one of the best managers in Premier League history \u2014 rivaling Alex Ferguson \u2014 he repeatedly needed to defend City against allegations of monetary breaches, with greater than 100 charges still hanging over the club.<\/p>\n
City was accused of providing misleading details about its funds over a nine-year period from 2009-18 \u2014 a span wherein it won three titles and signed a few of the world\u2019s best players like Yaya Toure, Sergio Aguero and Kevin de Bruyne. One in every of those titles was won under Guardiola.<\/p>\n
City has at all times denied wrongdoing. Guardiola said he was \u201cfully convinced\u201d the club was innocent.<\/p>\n