Pep Guardiola has hinted he will remain at Manchester City next season, a move that cast further doubt on the chances of Enzo Maresca becoming the new manager.
Despite his impressive record at City, Guardiola’s future has been in the news for the past few weeks as it’s claimed the club are planning for life without the Catalan coach in case he moves on this summer.
Former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has been tipped to replace Guardiola but the Spaniard latest comments indicate he plans to see out the final year of his contract.
Guardiola has insisted that he still has the hunger to bring success to the club.
“I wouldn’t be 10 years, even with good titles, if I didn’t have an incredible environment,” Guardiola admitted, as per The Guardian. “Now I feel more, I don’t know, happy, not happy, but I don’t know, still have incredible energy, still I’m so good, coming here to work on my day off.”
He added: “I love when Gundo [Ilkay Gundogan] came back from Barcelona and said, ‘Man City is top, top’. You know, when that happens, we are in a good way. That’s why we are consistently in the Champions League for the last 12, 13, 14 years. That’s why we are always fighting for the titles, because they are consistent around the tactics, the systems, the players, the managers. It’s like a bubble that makes people feel good.”
Guardiola also spoke about the pressure that comes with playing at the highest level. City remain firmly in the hunt for another Premier League title as they chase leaders Arsenal.
They have already lifted the Carabao Cup this season and are also preparing for an FA Cup final against Chelsea.
“The hours before the game, I feel it [pressure] but the process between games I am more calm. Last season was 24 hours thinking ‘what will happen at the club if we will not qualify for the Champions League?’ I felt it a lot,” he said. “This season we won the Carabao Cup, [reached the] FA Cup final again and still fighting against Arsenal, so what can I say? It is really good. I would have loved to go through in the Champions League but the level is higher and it will be good learnings for me for the next season.”
With Guardiola’s latest admission, it’s now left to see if Enzo Maresca will opt for a new job elsewhere or wait until his former boss sees his contract out at Man City.
