Manchester City: behind the scenes of Pep Guardiola’s unexpected extension

It was the bombshell of Tuesday evening on the football planet. At the end of his contract in June 2025 and mentioned in several departure rumors, Pep Guardiola has decided to accept a new one-year contract extension with an option for an additional year. It had been suggested that Guardiola could leave City at the end of the campaign alongside sporting director Txiki Begiristain, whose departure – and the arrival of Hugo Viana from Sporting CP as his replacement – was confirmed in October. As a reminder, Pep Guardiola was appointed to the Etihad Stadium in 2016 after managing Barcelona and Bayern Munich, winning 18 trophies during his time with the Manchester club, including six Premier League titles and the club’s first ever triumph. club in the Champions League in 2023. An official announcement confirming the new contract is expected in the coming days.

This significantly changes the situation around Manchester City. While the information does not necessarily mean an immediate solution to their poor recent form, given the multiple injury situation, it is obviously the news the club have been eagerly awaiting and it signals that Pep Guardiola is, nine years on , more committed than ever to the Cityzens project. With sporting director Txiki Begiristain departing at the end of the season, replaced by Hugo Viana, Guardiola’s reappointment will help steady the ship at a time when a period of inevitable change looms. Moreover, Hugo Viana had imposed a deadline on the former FC Barcelona coach who had to make his decision before Christmas and Boxing Day.

An unexpected decision that relieves everyone

The extension of Pep Guardiola is indeed good news for Hugo Viana who needed time to plan the next season, since several files were closely linked to the future of the Catalan tactician. The cases of Kevin de Bruyne and İlkay Gündoğan, who end their contracts in 2025. Without forgetting, the expirations of 2026 like Bernardo Silva, John Stones, Ederson and Kyle Walker. The fact that Pep Guardiola remains at the head of Manchester City will give Viana a big helping hand in the renegotiations, knowing that it is the coach who will set the playing model and the profile of the reinforcements. The future sporting director, who will officially take up his duties next summer, however wanted to know fairly quickly if he could count on the former Bayern coach. It is now done and everyone can breathe a sigh of relief in the Sky Blues offices. Appeasement but until when? A sword of Damocles still hangs over the Mancunian club.

According to information from Daily MailPep Guardiola has reportedly agreed to his contract extension, even as the club awaits the outcome of a trial over his 115 charges for allegedly breaching Premier League financial rules. An independent hearing into the case officially began in September, but the verdict is not expected to be made public until spring 2025 at the earliest. The Manchester City club has been accused of financial irregularities since 2009 and the most severe sanction for guilt is relegation. Point deductions and fines are also potential sanctions. The British tabloids claim that this issue was at the center of the renegotiations with Pep Guardiola and that this did not bother the 53-year-old Catalan. His new contract opens the possibility that Guardiola could manage Man City outside the top flight or with a points deduction if the club is ultimately hit with a sanction.