Pep Guardiola responded to feverish speculation over his future at Manchester City by saying he will speak to club chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak in the coming days before announcing whether he will serve out the remaining year of his contract.
Several British media outlets, including national broadcaster BBC, have reported that Guardiola will leave at the end of the season and that Enzo Maresca – the former Chelsea manager who was previously Guardiola’s assistant at City – is the leading contender to take over.
Speaking after a draw at Bournemouth that ended City’s chances of winning the Premier League, Guardiola did not deny widespread reports pointing to his imminent departure after a decade of trophy-laden years at the club.
“I (will) talk to my president first,” Guardiola said. “And after that… we decide (whether) to have another year, we talk about everything, we will decide.”
Asked whether these talks will take place after the final game of the season at home to Aston Villa, Guardiola replied: «No, we will talk in the coming days.»
There was no immediate response from Maresca’s representatives when contacted by The Associated Press.
Guardiola, who has won 17 major trophies with City since joining English football in 2016, has been asked repeatedly in recent weeks whether he would stay at City beyond this season.
On Monday, he rolled his eyes when asked again about his future and replied: «I’ve said so many times: I have another year.»
After the Bournemouth match, he said he wanted to ‘focus on taking the team to the highest point’ before announcing his future plans.
“I am the luckiest man in the world to play at this club,” he said. «This club is extraordinary. For us the season is over, so we want to arrive in the last match with our fans.»
Overseeing the most successful period in City’s history during his decade in charge, Guardiola has spent longer at the club than at Barcelona (2008-12) and Bayern Munich (2013-16).
His biggest achievement at City is winning the Premier League-Champions League-FA Cup treble in the 2022-2023 season, replicating Manchester United’s 1999 feat.
Guardiola’s City team have won the Premier League six times, becoming the only team in the almost 140-year history of English football to win four top-flight titles in a row (2021-24), the first team to reach 100 points in a top-flight season (2017-18) and the first team to win the league’s domestic treble, FA Cup and League Cup in the same season (2018-19).
This season, City have won both the League Cup and FA Cup, but will finish second behind Arsenal in the Premier League. That was assured after the 1-1 draw at Bournemouth, which left City four points behind Arsenal.
Asked whether he thought a stand at City’s Etihad Stadium should be named after him, Guardiola said on Monday: ‘The most important thing in our lives is that when you look back you can say: ‘Wow.’ You can watch with a big smile and that was (so to speak) good.”
«I’m pretty sure,» he added, «that most of the people who lived together this time can feel that.»
Published on May 20, 2026
