Manchester City prepare for Pep Guardiola exit after decade of dominance
Guardiola’s possible exit would close a 17-trophy era and force City to prove its model can outlast the man who built it.
Pep Guardiola’s departure could come just as Manchester City are still chasing another Premier League title, a reminder that even dynasties must plan for life after their defining architect. Reports on May 18 said City expect Guardiola to leave at the end of the season, possibly after Sunday’s final league match against Aston Villa, even though the club still says he is under contract for next season and hopes he stays.
The tension reflects the scale of what is at stake. Guardiola signed a two-year extension on November 21, 2024, keeping him at City through June 2027, but he had already signaled that his future was unsettled. In 2024, he said City’s struggles had affected his thinking when he chose to extend. He has also said that when he eventually leaves Manchester City, he plans to take a break from football management rather than retire.
If this proves to be the end, it would close one of the most dominant managerial eras in English football. Guardiola has won six Premier League titles and delivered Manchester City’s first UEFA Champions League in 2023, achievements that turned the club into a permanent fixture at the top of English and European football. Outside reporting puts his haul at 17 major trophies, while some City material later described it as 18, underlining the breadth of a reign that transformed the club’s identity as much as its trophy cabinet.
That is why the succession question matters far beyond one dugout. Former City assistant Enzo Maresca, now associated with Chelsea, is being viewed as the leading candidate to follow Guardiola, although City have not confirmed any succession plan. Any handover would test whether Manchester City can preserve the recruitment model, tactical standards and global brand built under Guardiola, or whether the club’s success has been tied too tightly to one manager’s authority.
The timing also keeps the stakes high. City may still win the 2025-26 Premier League title, which would add one more major trophy before any farewell. Even with a contract running to 2027, the possibility of Guardiola’s exit now forces Manchester City to confront the same question every modern powerhouse eventually faces: how to sustain excellence after the transformational leader is gone.
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