Pep Guardiola signed a two-year extension with Manchester City, committing to oversee squad changes and future success despite a tough run of form.
Pep Guardiola admitted that he had initially planned for this season to be his last at Manchester City, but he chose not to "let the club down" after a challenging stretch of four consecutive defeats. The six-time Premier League winner gave City a major boost on Thursday by signing a two-year extension, extending his tenure to over a decade.
City had been concerned that the 53-year-old was preparing to part ways, and the club worked hard to convince him to renew his contract. His close relationship with chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak played a key role in his decision.
"Since the beginning of the season I've been thinking a lot. I thought that (this season) should be the last one. But with the problems we had in the last month, I felt that now is not the time to leave. I would have let the club down," the Spaniard said.
"I felt that I could not leave now. Simple as that. Maybe the four defeats was the reason why and I felt that I cannot leave. I felt the club still wanted me and the fact we're still together so I signed," Guardiola added.
City have suffered losses in Premier League matches away at Bournemouth and Brighton, as well as a 4-1 defeat to new Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim’s Sporting. They were also knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Tottenham.
Guardiola’s clarity on his future should provide a boost to a squad that is now five points behind Liverpool in the title race, as they aim for an unprecedented fifth consecutive league title.
City will face their north-west rivals next week, following a crucial clash with Tottenham on Saturday, marking the beginning of an important run of fixtures leading up to Christmas.
The extension also helps avoid any managerial uncertainty during a busy summer, which will see City compete in the Club World Cup in America.
"Every time I sign a contract it's "OK, the last two". And after I re-signed the contract I said, "OK, the last two". Honestly I think right now me and my staff deserve to be here. I'm not arrogant but it's the truth," Guardiola said.
"We deserve the chance, after four defeats in a row, to try to bounce back and turn this situation. I had the feeling that we had to take the right decisions for the future. I enjoy being here. I like my job. The moment I don't have that feeling, even under contract, I will call my chairman and chief executive to say the best for the club right now is that I have to leave," he added.
City were facing the prospect of losing both Guardiola and sporting director Txiki Begiristain, but have now resolved both positions with the appointment of Hugo Viana as Begiristain's successor. Guardiola's comments suggested that he is prepared to oversee changes within the squad to ensure City's continued success in the years to come.
"In football you cannot win all the time. This season we have won one (the Community Shield) already and maybe we are not going to win the other ones but this is not the problem. The problem is what's next, what decisions do we have to take to still be in there, to still be a good team," Guardiola said.
"The fans have to push us to win again. Some will be delighted like I am but some might believe it's enough. I know all of them - they know us quite well and we'll never give up. In the last games we were there. We still have to adjust some things but hopefully it will happen," the Man City boss concluded.
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