With speculation around Pep Guardiola’s future continuing to do the rounds, one Manchester City icon has urged the club to make one certain decision
Former Manchester City ace Stuart Pearce has urged the club to keep Pep Guardiola for as long as possible. Guardiola, 55, has repeatedly insisted he will stay at City until the end of his contract.
In November 2024, Guardiola signed a two-year contract extension, keeping him at the Etihad Stadium until the summer of 2027. Nevertheless, there has still been speculation around Guardiola’s time at the club coming to an end, particularly after Erling Haaland appeared to hint the end may be nigh for the ex-Barcelona manager.
A few months previously, it also came to light that ex-Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca had held talks with City, which proved to be part of the reason why the west Londoners chose to sack the Italian. However, despite all the rumours, Pearce has insisted City should do whatever they can to keep Guardiola.
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Speaking to Betway, the ex-City manager said: “When you look at all football clubs around the world and look at how stable certain clubs are, Manchester City are one of the most stable of the lot. With the manager, you don’t see the owners clamouring for headlines.
“But it’s going to be a big, big ask to replace him when he leaves. Whether you look at a like-for-like replacement potentially, they’ve got feeder clubs around the world, but have they got managers around the world that might come in from their other clubs?
“That might be something going forward. A total change of style might set them back slightly. Can you replicate what he’s achieved already? It’s been absolutely incredible.
“Obviously, I was at City prior to the wealth and the riches arriving. So you can see the impact he’s had. I would try and hang on to him as long as humanly possible.
“There’s been talk over the last few years about him packing it in. Personally, if I was City, I would just keep him there – you might even want to keep him there as a director of football afterwards.”
In a recent interview, Haaland appeared to suggest he and his City team-mates are bracing themselves for Guardiola to depart the club in the near future. The Norwegian goal machine said: “When I talk about good people around me, it’s not just my friends but the people at the club.
“I’m lucky to be at a club with so many good people, and with Pep, who pushes us every single day. I’m lucky to have worked with Pep for three-and-a-half years.
“It’s been an amazing time, as we all know, and no matter what happens in the future, we still need to keep pushing. I need to keep pushing myself and others around me to get better.”
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