Pep Guardiola will leave Manchester City at the end of the season after 10 extraordinary years in charge, the club confirmed on 22 May. His final match will be Sunday’s home fixture against Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium, bringing down the curtain on one of the most dominant and transformative managerial reigns in the history of English football.
The announcement comes three days after City’s title challenge ended with a draw at Bournemouth, handing Arsenal the Premier League title for the first time in 22 years and leaving Guardiola without the championship in each of the last two seasons.
In a club statement that captured both the warmth and the finality of the moment, Guardiola reflected on a decade that reshaped the club and the sport around it.
“When I arrived, my first interview was with Noel Gallagher. I walked out thinking, okay, Noel is here? This will be fun. And what a time we have had together. Don’t ask me the reasons I’m leaving. There is no reason, but deep inside, I know it’s my time. 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. We worked. We suffered. We fought. And we did things our own way. Our way. So as my time comes to an end, be happy. Oasis are back again. Love you all.”
Guardiola arrived at City in 2016 already considered one of the finest coaches in the world, having won La Liga twice with Barcelona and the Bundesliga three times with Bayern Munich. What followed at the Etihad Stadium exceeded even the most optimistic expectations. He won 17 major trophies in his decade in charge, including six Premier League titles, one Champions League, one Club World Cup and, most recently, the FA Cup following City’s 1-0 victory over Chelsea at Wembley on 16 May.
His most recent league title came in 2023-24, and his influence extended far beyond the trophy cabinet. Possession-based, high-pressing football that was once the preserve of elite European clubs became the template for teams across every level of the English game during his tenure. As City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak put it in the club’s farewell statement: “In the last 10 years he has not only made Manchester City better. He has also made football better.”
Al Mubarak paid personal tribute to the relationship between the two parties. “Over the last 10 years, honesty and trust have formed the bedrock on which we have navigated every situation together with Pep, always understanding that we could find the right answer together. Today, the right answer is for Pep to finish his journey as the manager of Manchester City.”
Former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca is understood to be the frontrunner to succeed Guardiola, a familiar face at the club having previously worked alongside the departing manager at City. The club said it would host a fitting tribute and farewell for Guardiola in the coming days.
Guardiola leaves City having redefined what the club could achieve and, in doing so, having permanently raised the standards against which every future manager will be measured. The 55-year-old’s legacy is not merely in the silverware, considerable as that collection is, but in the style, the ambition and the relentless pursuit of perfection that characterised every one of his 10 seasons.
