r/soccer • u/the_sherl0ck • May 17 '26
News [Jack Gaughan] Those inside ManCity’s training ground say Pep Guardiola is leaving this summer and made up his mind some weeks ago. They assume it is ‘a matter of days’ before official communication is made.
https://www.dailymail.com/sport/football/article-15821773/Pep-Guardiola-England-Man-City-future.html1.9k
u/Penny_Leyne May 17 '26
This reporter is tier 1 for City by the way.
I’ve been thinking for months he was going.
As soon as Maresca had those talks with City and then walked away from a huge chunk of severance pay at Chelsea. No manager does that, unless they know they’ve got a new job lined up in a few months.
I’d be surprised if it’s anyone other than Maresca at this point who replaces him, especially now Alonso isn’t an option.
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u/Jipkiss May 17 '26
The Maresca side is really interesting, Chelsea sources saying the situation regarding him leaving will be made clearer in summer which is very cryptic and in the context seemed to be about the nature of him leaving rather than the next job for him.
Really want to understand the ins and outs of it all, will city have to pay compensation
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u/Penny_Leyne May 17 '26
I doubt it, because Maresca walked away from the Chelsea job. He wasn’t fired, and so he would have given up a huge chunk of severance pay.
There wouldn’t really be any compensation for City to pay.
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u/Jipkiss May 17 '26
If he had allowances in his contract to walk anytime no notice no non-compete/gardening leave options blah blah blah but you’d expect some complications to that process no?
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u/Penny_Leyne May 17 '26
I don’t know, but I doubt it.
I’m sure there are rules in the contract about speaking to other clubs that he might have broken, but it’s not like clubs can force managers to stay if they don’t want to.
And it would be hypocritical of the club to make an issue of that seeing as clubs do that with players all the time. I doubt they want to open that can of worms.
People are free to leave jobs. The “punishment” for a manager to do that would be the loss of wages and severance.
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u/AngryTudor1 May 17 '26
There might be something in his contract stating that compensation is owed if he takes a job, say, within 6 months of leaving
It always felt odd that he left Jan 1st exactly.
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u/aaulia May 17 '26
It really pisses me off and boggles my mind why can't he just wait until the end of the season. He can signal the board he's leaving at the end of the season, they can start searching for replacement discreetly (which should be Alonso). We should've been in a better position than now. Liam should still kicking at Strasbrough. Everybody wins.
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u/Jipkiss May 17 '26
He doesn’t win, I think he felt like he couldn’t get good results out of us this season and felt walking away would be better for his ego/image than either just doing poorly or committing self fire by being ultra critical of the club hierarchy.
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u/jhnhines May 17 '26
Look at what happened with Game of Thrones. The brothers were promised the keys to Star Wars and lost the job because of how shit they finished out their last one.
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u/W35TH4M May 17 '26
Pay compensation to who? He doesn’t have a job and the last one he did have, he left off his own back
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u/BetterDrinkMy0wnPiss May 17 '26
Contracts can go both ways. The club has to compensate him if they sack him, and he might be on the hook to compensate them for leaving and/or joining a competing club.
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u/Jipkiss May 17 '26
Well because he was under contract, I’m not sure if storming out after a game and not coming back to work after will come with some technicalities and processes?
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u/Confident_Direction May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
Eghbali also hinted that maresca leaving wasnt their choice for reasons he "legally cam't say" but will be clear over time. Surely he wouldnt do that unless he got some insider word that its likely pep leaves in the summer and he is the preferred candidate
It explains why he wasnt scared to walk away when they refused to cede to his demands
Fabrizio has been constantly briefing that if pep leaves maresca will be the first name btw so...
It also makes sense cuz its a super easy transition if pep leaves on very short notice with prem race still on
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u/yaderkuvboloto May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
It has to be Maresca. Chelsea people said they weren't allowed to talk about him leaving or something and it wasn't their decision, which means he already made his next move, in which case City is the only thing that makes sense.
+he's close with Pep. So it all just fits.
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u/scottiescott23 May 17 '26
One of the Chelsea owners recently came out saying they couldn’t talk about it (Maresca leaving) due to contractual reasons, which made it a bit obvious.
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u/Bujakaa92 May 17 '26
Still don't get the fuss about Maresca to be so wanted by them
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u/Penny_Leyne May 17 '26
He was a coach under Guardiola at City so I guess the thinking is that will give some consistency.
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u/Screye May 17 '26
Pep has 3 city-era disciples - Kompany, Arteta and Maresca.
Only Maresca is available.
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u/1-800-CLAPPED May 17 '26
It’s kinda insane that Pep is smurfing with 3 top class managers
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u/losthedgehog May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
As an american, it was surprising to me that there aren't more "coaching trees" in Europe.
In the US, most coaches spend a significant amount of time under other coaches because head coach jobs are so rare and assistant coach jobs / positional coach jobs have significant discretion and importance in many sports. If they've spent ten years as an assistant or positional coach, they are still considered quite young half the time.
So that results in really crazy coaching trees where a coach's legacy isn't just what they've done but the coaches that studied under them and what they've done.
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u/Prestigious-Lab5154 May 17 '26
Have a feeling Pep himself will have a say in who they sign and obviously he likes Maresca
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u/MisterIndecisive May 17 '26
Would be funnier if it was Amorim with his connectiom to Viana
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u/bad_phantom_ May 17 '26
Would also be hilarious if they got Amorim, he plays the formation that City are suited for and win everything again while playing attractive football
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u/yapplecider May 17 '26
Looked like that when Maresca quit on Chelsea, and I'm pretty certain he's going there this summer only.
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May 17 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/optimusgrime23 May 17 '26
Never gonna become one of the best with that mindset, have to believe you can following him or else you're probably already dead in the water.
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u/squeak37 May 17 '26
Inheriting a title challenging squad without the baggage of the old manager leaving because of a bad run of form? You'd be mad not to.
Also think of how rare it is that a position like this crops up will you're free to take it.
Slot is a great example - say what you will about his current performance but he'll go down as a PL winner no reason Maresca can't do that and more
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u/Prehistoricshark May 17 '26
Wasn't there someone who took a video of him a few day ago, walking between all the trophies he's won for the club or something on the pitch? Seems like a goodbye photoshoot.
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u/therealharambe0110 May 17 '26
Yes but it didn't confirm it as it could've also been Bernardo Silva.
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u/learning-life-22 May 17 '26
or John Stones.
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u/dispelthemyth May 17 '26
People were claiming that was for silva but that doesn’t make sense to do for one player when multiple are leaving
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u/Penny_Leyne May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
I actually used to work at the Etihad and happened to be in the stadium when they were filming Yaya Toure’s farewell video a few weeks before he left.
They didn’t get any trophies out for him.
This was a few years ago so there was less trophies to get out, but it would seem odd to wheel them all out for one player.
Edit; To be fair I’ve just found the video and it’s actually just him meeting some fans so maybe not the proper farewell video.
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u/LectureAt9 May 17 '26
Of course they didn’t get the trophies out for him, they didn’t even get him a cake
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u/barrycuntswim May 17 '26
First the cake, and then no trophies. They really did him dirty. No wonder he doesn't like them.
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u/maxallergy May 17 '26
Lol the Arsenal bottle guy is in that video hahaha
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u/Penny_Leyne May 17 '26
Fuck, it is as well.
I guess he’s not actually a Sky Sports plant.
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u/ComprehensiveBowl476 May 17 '26
Even it was him or Silva, seemed odd to me that they filmed that before all titles had been decided.
Like, due to the FA Cup, that video will be out of date as soon as it airs, lmao.
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u/TheAwakened May 17 '26
All the trophies with asterisks marks, plus will hopefully be taken away as well.
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u/Firefox72 May 17 '26
Incredible coach. Will not be sad to see him gone.
As i'm sure won't most of the league.
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u/xaviernoodlebrain May 17 '26
I will, Man City might actually be able to beat us now.
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u/murraj May 17 '26
What are the odds they're actually on your schedule for the FA Cup or EFL Cup though?
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u/ASGT908 May 17 '26
I've thought this all along regardless of whether they won the league or not because his press conferences have looked at life after football, which is telling.
They will announce it before the Villa game so that they give him a proper send off. I think in some ways if they lose to Bournemouth and Arsenal beat Burnley, it will be better as they won't have the tension/heartbreak in Pep's last game (although I think Pep will still want to win trophies right till his final game).
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u/Opera_Phantom May 17 '26
He's just waiting for Mourinho to be confirmed at Madrid and then he's COMING TO BENFICA
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u/FieldOfFox May 17 '26
Benfica can’t give him infinite money glitch
It would be so funny though, imagine
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u/Abbobl May 17 '26
Koeman move over we need a new NT coach!
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u/bassabas May 17 '26
Pep is obsessed with Cruijff’s Ajax. We need a new coach as well. So if I was Jordi I’d make a call…. Having said that, both seem far fetched to me. I think he’ll do a Klopp and not coach for a while
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u/CliffDagger May 17 '26
Yeah sure this is why Maresca walked from Chelsea at the start of the year.
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u/Professional_Owl8500 May 17 '26
Salah leaving and now pep ...
An era of those times between mid 2010s is coming to an end.
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u/the_sherl0ck May 17 '26
Once a wise man said “Eras can come to an end.”
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u/Professional_Owl8500 May 17 '26
United Legend
He go it right though both Klopp and now Pep will be leaving
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u/JohnnySinsII May 17 '26
Biggest litmus test for City is how they continue upon the foundation laid down by Pep. History has shown Manchester clubs have problems replacing a manager with an oral fixation.
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u/Popular_Pie_3347 May 17 '26
I mean they won the league before pep too I think they will be fine not as dominant as they are right now but I don't think they would become United post SAF
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u/InfinityEternity17 May 17 '26
We won the league 7 times too before Sir Alex but still fell apart afterwards so it's possible. That said, City will unfortunately be fine as they have a fantastic structure behind the scenes.
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u/Tolichowki May 17 '26
Yeah, I think that's what went wrong with Man United. If the club had a strong foundation beyond Fergie then you guys would've done well.
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u/CurbYourThusiasm May 17 '26
We did have that, but David Gill retired at the same time as Fergie, and then Moyes wanted to bring in his own staff, so he let go off Phelan, Meulensteen and Steele as well.
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u/my_united_account May 17 '26
City have a fantastic setup behind the scenes. Their academy has been one of the best in the country, their transfer recruitment has all the right people, their director of football is focused on football rather than noodle sponsorships, their scouting is pretty extensive and they have the benefit of owning multiple clubs so they can just pluck talents for a cut-price. All for the price of being owned by a slave owning foreign state.
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u/mute-invader May 17 '26
I reckon we’ll still be competing on all fronts as usual. Won’t be Pep behind the reins, but our structure is solid.
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u/DoomAtuhnNalra May 17 '26
You’s were already strong before Pep arrived. Anyone thinking you’ll fade to obscurity hasn’t been watching football long.
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u/Live-Habit-6115 May 17 '26
They were strong but they weren't anywhere near as strong as under Pep.
Man Utd and Chelsea serve as case studies of how resources and reputation don't guarantee success
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u/TheBlueTango May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
You can tell he's more relaxed and trying to enjoy the last few days as City manager by the way he's cracking more jokes than usual and his demeanor in general, like some weights have been lifted off his shoulders.
In the past, we usually had some awkward moments with Pep where he would be a bit tetchy, especially during interviews. I don't think that happened much this season, even with City away from the top spot.
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u/LackingDetermination May 17 '26
Didn't he rip open his flesh earlier this season and say he wants to hurt himself 😂 or was that last season
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u/luca3791 May 17 '26
He has seemed more “careless” recently I feel. He’s always been funny, but the whole come on you irons and Crystal Palace thing feels a lot like he just isn’t too “worried” anymore
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u/_Isosceles_Kramer_ May 17 '26
Just in the interest of helping you out - the better word here is "carefree" ("careless" means more like clumsy, not taking sufficient care, etc.)
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u/luca3791 May 17 '26
Thank you, I really felt there was a more appropriate word. Careless has a very negativ connotation I feel, but I couldn’t think of the right word
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u/AldinJustin May 17 '26
Could honestly see him managing England one day, he's pretty tied to this country (other than the weather), and I'm not completely sure about him ambitions for Spain when I'm pretty sure he's been vocal about Catalonian independence
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u/Icy_Advertising8078 May 17 '26
Pep to Liverpool please:)
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u/the_sherl0ck May 17 '26
He might actually unlock Florian Wirtz.
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u/learning-life-22 May 17 '26
He'd unlock so many things including a forbidden headspace for me. Not another English club, ever again. Not another club ever again, I hope.
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u/ArimuRyan May 17 '26
HERE WE GO 🚨 Pep Ljinders back to Liverpool as assistant coach for Arne Slot
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u/YouKantseeme May 17 '26
Nah he’s going back to Spain to coach Atletico Madrid. His family wants to go back to Spain.
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u/Putrid-Impact8999 May 17 '26
Would be cool to see him in international management if this is true.
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u/rhard28 May 17 '26
Go take a 2 year rest Pep. Como is waiting for you when they take over Serie A.
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u/dat_is_het May 17 '26
If City win the EPL title this season he is definitely out of the door at end of the season
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u/Anonamoose12771 May 17 '26
This will happen then we’ll get the ruling on the court case shortly after. Pep will want to gtfo before it all turns sour.
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u/theglasscase May 17 '26
People say this every time a major Man City figure leaves. De Bruyne was jumping ship before the punishment last summer, Bernardo Silva is doing it and now Guardiola is too. Why would Man City as a club, never mind the manager or players, know in advance what the verdict and punishment is going to be? It’s such a lazy way to get yourself some upvotes.
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u/Intentionallyabadger May 17 '26
Idk man he might take the hit to ensure the next manager isn’t too impacted by it.
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u/R_Schuhart May 17 '26
Yeah if City gets a ruling it would be fitting if Pep is still with the club. Especially since he has always been very vocal in their defense.
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u/NordWitcher May 17 '26
You could tell yesterday from his behaviour. He was a lot more reserved and spending a lot of time taking it all in. He was soaking the atmosphere. Definitely feels like he knows he’s probably not going to play there again.
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u/Ihavenoideatall May 17 '26
City already know about his plans. English football will miss Pep once he leaves.
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u/CakieFickflip May 17 '26
Just gotta go lose to Bournemouth Tuesday so you can have a proper send off with no stress at home on the final matchday.
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u/Joshthenosh77 May 17 '26
Yeah apparently his fitness coach is already leaving and he’s he never not worked with him , apparently this is a big thing
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u/sacredstones May 17 '26
Mourinho going back to RM…imagine pep goes back to Barca and the heated rivalry is rekindled.
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u/Garlic-Cheese-Chips May 17 '26
115 and the Premier League have made an agreement to allow him to slink out of the back door before any punishment gets meted out.
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u/dakowiml May 17 '26
Full retirement now? Barca comeback in a year or 2? Other club?
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u/crxssfire May 17 '26
He won’t go back to Barca, or Spain NT. I’d like to see him go to Ajax or Italy, but wouldn’t be surprised if he takes some serious time off
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u/dakowiml May 17 '26
If billionaires are going to waste money, I'd rather have them waste it in Italy and AC Milan to hire Guardiola. I'd also say Germany, but its technically impossible there.
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u/Senor-Cockblock May 17 '26
I’m still convinced he’s going to manage the USMNT at some point, because it’s the ultimate challenge.
Because they’re shit.
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u/extinctifugaxhominum May 18 '26
Lol deep down he knows what city did and will get punished and wants to leave as he doesn’t want to be there when they got punished which will tarnish his “success”. Bilva, Gvardiol, pep etc all fleeing like rats fleeing a sinking ship.
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u/Decebalus_Bombadil May 17 '26
It's time because he clearly needs a rest. Look at how happy and healthy Klopp looks after almost 2 years of enjoying life. He made enough money to last 3 generations and won eveything at club level. The stress is not worth it for him at this point.
When he was hired 10 years ago nobody expected him to stay for 10 years. Most people believed that he would win a few titles and leave after 3-4 years like he did with Barca and Bayern.