Pep Guardiola to leave Man City: Spaniard announces departure after a decade of success at Premier League club
Manchester City have confirmed that Pep Guardiola will leave at the end of the season after 10 years in charge; the Spaniard has won 20 trophies during an unprecedented era of success at Man City; Guardiola had one year left on his contract
Friday 22 May 2026 16:02, UK
Pep Guardiola will leave Manchester City this summer after a trophy-laden decade in charge.
"And what a time we have had together," said Guardiola in an emotional statement. "Don't ask me the reasons I'm leaving. There is no reason, but deep inside, I know it's my time."
Following months of speculation around his future, the Spaniard will depart after City's final-day game against Aston Villa on Sunday, despite having one year remaining on his contract.
Guardiola will leave having won a cup double in his 10th and final campaign but missing out on the Premier League title after Man City's draw at Bournemouth.
The club have confirmed the North Stand at the Etihad Stadium will be renamed 'The Pep Guardiola Stand' and a statue to mark his "incredible contribution during his 10 historic years" has also been commissioned.
And as for Guardiola, he is planning for a break from football.
"Rest!" he said in his press conference on Friday. "No plans for [coaching] for a while. Otherwise I would be here. I need to step back. I will not [coach] for a while."
- How Man City have guarded against post-Pep collapse
- Man City transfer news | Watch FREE PL highlights
- Got Sky? Watch Premier League games LIVE on your phone📱
- Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW 📺
Since his appointment in February 2016, the 55-year-old has won everything club football has to offer, transforming and reshaping the landscape of the Premier League as we know it.
During 10 years at City he has guided the club to a remarkable 20 trophies, including six Premier League titles and a Champions League trophy in 2023.
Guardiola will continue his relationship with the City Football Group by taking up a role as a global ambassador. The role will see him provide technical advice to the clubs in the group, working on specific projects and collaborations.
Guardiola's exit comes while City await the outcome of an investigation into 115 charges of alleged breaches of the Premier League's financial rules.
The alleged breaches covered the period between 2009 and 2018. Manchester City deny all of the charges.
Why is Pep leaving now?
Guardiola was asked why he is leaving now and while he did not reveal the main reason, he admitted it is time for City to have a new head coach.
"It's the time. It's not like going to sleep one day and the day after to say 'now is the time'. It's the process, I felt it for a while," he said.
"The club respect me, the decision. The club has to be ready. This job, it's Selhurst Park, Anfield, Madrid and Madrid, FA Cup - now I have to live my life and see what happens.
"The club needs a new manager, new energy, with these incredible players we have right now. And start to write a new chapter.
"It's not about when. You know the time. It's not one week ago. We're in competition, I need the players to be with me and me be with them. And after there is the moment to say 'ok, I want to say a proper goodbye to my people'."
Asked if his energy levels has something to do with his departure, Guardiola said: "Absolutely. Absolutely.
"I feel I will not have the energy every day, with expectations to fight for the title. I know myself, I have that energy but I feel like I will not have [in the future].
"It's been 10 years. It's not ambition. After 10 years, 'ok Pep'. It's good to shake, to move, new faces. It's the perfect moment, the perfect time."
Pep's departure quotes in full from emotional video
"Nothing is eternal, if it was, I would be here. Eternal will be the feeling, the people, the memories, the love I have for my Manchester City.
"This is a city built from work. From graft. You see it in the colour of the bricks. From people who clocked in early, stayed late. The factories. The Pankhursts. The unions. The music. Simply the Industrial Revolution and how this changed the world. And I think I grew to understand that, and my teams did too.
"We worked. We suffered. We fought. And we did things our own way. Our way.
"Hard work comes in many forms. Trips to Bournemouth, when we lost the Premier League, and you were there. Trips to Istanbul, when you were there, too.
"Remember, the Manchester Arena attack, when this city showed the world what strength actually looks like? Not anger. Not fear. Just love. Community. Togetherness. A city united.
"Remember, losing my mum during COVID and feeling this club carry me through it. The fans, the staff, the people of Manchester, you gave me strength when I needed it most. Cris, my kids, my whole family, you were there as always. Khaldoon, you were there too.
"Players don't forget - every single instant, moment, me, my staff, this club, everything. What we have done, we have done it for all of you. And you have been just exceptional. You don't know it yet, but you are leaving a legacy.
"So as my time comes to an end, be happy. Oasis are back again.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for trusting me.
"Thank you for pushing me.
"Thank you for loving me.
"Tony Walsh said in his unforgettable poem this is the place. I'm sorry, Tony: this is my place.
"Noel…I was right.
"It has been so f****** fun.
"Love you all."
Toughest act in football to follow - but equally enticing
Analysis by Sky Sports' Laura Hunter:
As the Premier League prepares to bid farewell to one of its greatest teachers of the modern era, talk will turn to who has the right pedigree to replace the great Pep Guardiola. There is no one like him. No tactician on the planet is able to replicate what Pep has achieved with three different iterations of Manchester City squads.
A new path must therefore be forged.
Whoever replaces Guardiola is taking on a challenge similar in many ways to the one David Moyes inherited when he replaced Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United in 2013. That experiment was fairly shortlived. But this situation has one key difference.
Moyes' downfall was not engineered by the fact he followed an icon, he essentially took over an ageing playing squad which had reached the end of the road. Only a small handful of players - Wayne Rooney and perhaps Robin van Persie - finished that first season without Fergie with any real credit.
But City's current squad is in a different phase of its evolution. It might be saying goodbye to club legends Bernardo Silva and John Stones this summer but the nucleus of talent left behind is in fine working order. If you are inheriting a team Pep built, it can be no bad thing. The average age of the group is such that it should only get better, too.
Arne Slot has already bucked the trend, proving with Liverpool last season what is possible when the combination of players is right. He won the Premier League with a team Jurgen Klopp had assembled and prepared to be winners.
With the right coach in charge and a bit of help in the summer window, there is no reason why this City side should not be in prime position to at least compete to do something similar.
'Seismic' - Pep's legacy revolutionised football
Sky Sports News' Ben Ransom:
"It has been the worst-kept secret in football but the fact we have confirmation from the man himself, it gives you a sense of the seismic nature of this news and decision.
"Pep Guardiola has become synonymous with the Premier League and the success at Manchester City.
"To think, in a matter of weeks, we will have a different manager in the chair after 10 years of turning up every week and hanging on his every word. It is taking time to digest.
"It has been an unparalleled era of success for Man City in their history. In terms of Premier League eras, it can be stacked up against Man Utd's period of dominance.
"Even when City didn't win the league, they were always there pushing teams until the very end. Even this season, they just fell short [vs Arsenal].
"Some of the best games and best title races we will ever see.
"In terms of legacy, he changed football. You can watch any match on a Saturday or Sunday, whether it is non-league, children's football or academies. So many teams have taken inspiration from what he has done.
"Whether it is playing out from the back, inverted full-backs or the high press. It has been a remarkable revolution and feels like such a long time since he arrived.
"The question was whether his style will fit into this country but now this country is built on his style."
Is Pep the Premier League's greatest ever manager? Carra has his say...
Jamie Carragher believes Pep Guardiola's achievements at Manchester City make him the greatest manager in the history of the Premier League.
"It is only if he is one or two [best Premier League managers], and we know who the other guy is, someone I have so much respect for: Sir Alex Ferguson," Carragher said.
"You can look at it both ways. If I am being totally honest, it would have to be Pep Guardiola. Sir Alex took a bit of time to get it going at Man Utd and Pep didn't get that but he had a much better team.
"City achieved everything that they did at Man Utd. They did the treble, domestic treble and won four league titles in a row. United did three in a row on a couple of occasions but if you think how long Pep was there, it is impossible to have 13 league titles like Sir Alex. He hasn't been there as long.
"You'd have to say Pep Guardiola is the greatest manager we have seen in the Premier League era."
