Manchester City have officially announced that manager Pep Guardiola has signed a two-year contract extension with the club.
For several months, speculation over the 53-year-old's long-term future in charge of the reigning Premier League champions has been rife, as his previous deal at the Etihad Stadium was due to expire at the end of this season.
After winning an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League title last season, Guardiola admitted that he is "closer to leaving than staying" at Man City, sparking suggestions that the current campaign could be his last at the Etihad.
Speculation over a possible exit intensified considerably after the club confirmed that Guardiola's close friend and director of football Txiki Begiristain will be stepping down from his post at the end of the season, with Sporting Lisbon's Hugo Viana chosen as his successor.
However, reports emerged on Tuesday claiming that Guardiola had agreed to put pen to paper on a one-year extension, with the option of an additional year.
Man City have now confirmed that Guardiola has in fact extended his deal by two years, and his new contract will take the Catalan to over a decade in charge of the club, having joined the Citizens in the summer of 2016.
It is understood that Guardiola's strong relationship with chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak supersedes the need for a clause to be inserted referencing the outcome of the club's hearing into the 115 charges levelled at the club by the Premier League.
The journey continues 🩵 pic.twitter.com/8aluupvQw9
— Manchester City (@ManCity) November 21, 2024
Guardiola: "I'm not moving, I can assure you"
Speaking to Man City's official website after signing his contract extension, Guardiola said: "Manchester City means so much to me.
"This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club. That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
"Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – the owner (Sheikh Mansour), the chairman Khaldoon [Al Mubarak], (CEO) Ferran [Soriano], (outgoing director of football) Txiki [Begiristain], the players and of course the fans... everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
"I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much. Hopefully now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus."
In a studio interview released on Man City's official website, Guardiola admitted that he considered leaving the club, but their recent struggles contributed to his decision to extend his stay.
"Since the beginning of the season, I was thinking a lot, there were some moments, I have to be honest, I thought this should be the last one because everyone is," said Guardiola.
"I felt I could not leave now, simple as that. Don't ask me the reason why. Maybe the four defeats were the reason why and I felt I cannot leave. I felt the club still want me or had the fact that we were together and that's the reason why we sign."
Reflecting on his long tenure at the Etihad, Guardiola continued: "Firstly it's because we won a lot otherwise you do not stay 11 years not even here in a place where I feel love," Pep added.
"Here is a business and you have to win and have a contract, but I know if you don't win maybe I would not continue.
"It's just the feeling the moment now will feel it's done, the club know it and that moment did not feel. I enjoy being here. I like my job. I like being the manager of this club.
We've got 👏👏 Guardiola! pic.twitter.com/JavtIW2Cjd
— Manchester City (@ManCity) November 21, 2024
Guardiola: 'I have everything a manager could ever wish for'
"I said many times from many many years ago, the moment I will not have that feeling, even under contract, I will ring my chairman and CEO and say the best for the club right now is I have to leave.
"I don't have that feeling right now and that's why I extended a little bit longer."
"I think the hierarchy is so stable, the club is so, so stable in many departments and everyone knows the quality of the players we have in this decade – nine, ten, eleven years," Guardiola added.
"I don't forget my first season here with the players, I had in that moment so that helped me a lot to understand the club, the team, the Premier League and many, many things and all of them were involved.
"I didn't have the feeling that the reason why is a specific reason – there are many the reasons why we have a lot of success."
Al Mubarak has praised Guardiola's leadership during his nine-year reign on the blue side of Manchester and has expressed his delight at the manager's decision to stay for at least two more years.
"Like every City fan, I am delighted that Pep's journey with Manchester City will continue; allowing his dedication, passion and innovative thinking to continue to shape the landscape of the game," said the Citizens chairman.
"His hunger for improvement and success remains insatiable and the direct beneficiaries of that will continue to be our players and coaching staff, the culture of our club, and the English game at large.
"This renewal will take Pep beyond a decade of coaching Manchester City and the opportunity to continue to re-write the managerial record books."
© Imago
'Guardiola's hunger for improvement and success remains insatiable'
Guardiola, widely regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time, has earned legendary status at Man City, having steered the club to a total of 18 trophies, including six Premier League titles in the last seven seasons as well as the club's first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023.
He was the mastermind behind Man City's magnificent treble-winning campaign in 2022-23 - arguably the club greatest season in their 130-year history - while his Citizens side became the first and only club to date to collect 100 points in a single Premier League season in 2017-18.
The following campaign, Man City became first team in English football history to win all four domestic trophies in a single season under the tutelage of the Catalan, who boasts an exceptional 72% win percentage as City manager across all competitions.
Guardiola's 490 matches in charge of the Citizens means that only Les McDowall - who took charge of 587 games between 1950 and 1963 - is ahead of him on the club's all-time list of most games managed.
The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss, who has won 353, drawn 70 and lost 67 of those 490 games in all competitions, has seen his City side score a remarkable 1,200 goals at an average of 2.45 goals per game over the last nine-and-a-half seasons.
Not only has Guardiola brought silverware to Man City and transformed them into the dominant force in English football, he has done so by implementing a unique, innovative and ever-evolving philosophy, one that has significantly impacted the wider English game and one that other coaches now attempt to replicate at all levels of football.
Guardiola, who was linked with the Brazil national team job earlier this month, is set to explain further his decision to commit his future to Man City at a press conference on Friday ahead of the Citizens' Premier League clash at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.
> Click here to view Pep Guardiola's greatest moments as Man City manager
Oliver Thomas
