Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola may have hinted at his next chapter with his comments on what comes next when his time at the Etihad comes to an end.
The Spaniard still faces an uncertain future despite his recent two-year contract extension with the Premier League champions, as they are still awaiting the outcome of the infamous 115 charges case that has spiralled this past year. That hearing has now concluded, but an outcome is still reportedly nowhere close to being reached, meaning it is set to continue for the foreseeable future.
Meanwhile, the loss of Rodri and Norwegian hitman Erling Haaland misfiring has seen the side’s results slump after they went five games without a win, the longest run Pep Guardiola has ever seen as a manager.
Miserable time for Manchester City.
City could be considered out of this season’s title race after recent results in the Premier League. The Cityzens find themselves eight points behind league leaders Liverpool, who hold a game in hand after this weekend’s Merseyside clash with Everton was postponed.
Their misfortunes can be pinpointed to the injury of Rodri, who has been so critical to the side. Erling Haaland has also seemed absent for some weeks after he started the season with ten goals in the opening five games of the campaign. He added his 13th goal of the season against Crystal Palace at the weekend, but that was his first goal since the loss to Brighton at the start of November. The Norwegian striker has failed to find the net in seven of his last ten Premier League appearances.
With things looking dire for the champions, many have speculated what comes next for Guardiola, but he has just hinted at his next role.
International role after Manchester City?
One possible destination that people could point to is Girona. The Spanish club have been a part of a fairytale story these past two years and is part of the City group. Not only that, but Guardiola’s younger brother is chairman of the club, putting fire on the possibility.
However, Pep has now poured water on that fire with his recent comments, as reported by Fabrizio Romano. The City boss has said that he will not manage another club after he leaves Manchester City, a timeframe that remains unknown.
The keyword to take into account here is club. It does leave room for an international role, which has been speculated for some time. With few achievements left at club level, the legendary manager could set his sights on international tournaments.
Reports emerged linking Guardiola to the Brazil national job. However, the country’s FA soon denied making any approach for Guardiola, leaving the most likely destination for any international role as his native homeland, Spain. The Spanish national team has only had three non-Spanish managers in its history, relying mostly on Spanish natives for the role, which has brought them the most success.
Despite the miserable run of results, Guardiola is a manager who can be trusted to turn things around, so it would be foolish to be expecting him to leave City any time soon. More so, given he has just signed a contract extension with the club, it does seem international duty could be part of his future after he highlights such a role in his comments.