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Guardiola to decide on future

Image: Pep Guardiola: Barcelona coach expected to announce a decision over his future on Friday

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola is expected to announce on Friday whether he will put pen to paper on a new deal or depart Camp Nou.

Barca boss set to announce whether he will stay or go

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola is expected to announce on Friday whether he will put pen to paper on a new deal with the Catalan giants or depart Camp Nou. Reports in Barcelona on Thursday morning claimed Barca boss Guardiola had already held a meeting with club president Sandro Rosell, at which he outlined his future plans. He will convey that message to the players when they reconvene for training on Friday ahead of Sunday's trip to Rayo Vallecano with the club then expected to reveal his decision. Guardiola, 41, has operated on short-term deals throughout his time at the Barca helm and his latest contract expires in the summer. But the manner of their defeat to Real Madrid last weekend - a defeat which effectively saw them relinquish their Primera Liga title to Jose Mourinho's men - and the midweek exit to Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals may prompt Guardiola to walk away after four trophy-laden years. Speculation in Catalonia on Thursday morning suggested the former Spain and Barca midfielder was giving serious consideration to quitting.

Decision

Speaking after the game with Chelsea on Tuesday, Guardiola said: "I will speak with Tito [Vilanova, assistant manager] and see what we have to do. "Right now, we need to talk more about the emotion of our players and how they recover because there are many players that have been playing a long time. "We have to go to Rayo Vallecano [this weekend], we are still Barca, we have to continue doing things as we usually do them. "So we will talk to the president as well and we will talk about everything - the situation what happened in these days and of course we will take a decision because it is time to take a decision now." Guardiola stepped up from Barca B manager to first-team boss in 2008 and has gone on to become the most successful coach in the club's illustrious history. He has led the azulgrana to two Champions League crowns, three La Liga trophies, one Copa del Rey, three Supercopas, two UEFA Super Cups and two FIFA Club World Cups.

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