Guardiola ‘to call time’ on Man City spell in ‘final decision’ with Prem expulsion ‘a realistic outcome’
Pep Guardiola is reportedly set to leave Man City at the end of the 2024/25 Premier League season with sources revealing his impending departure.
The Citizens won a Treble in 2023 with Guardiola cementing his legacy as one of the greatest Premier League managers of all time.
And Guardiola’s side looked on course for another Treble this term before Real Madrid dumped them out of the Champions League quarter-finals on penalties.
Man City did win the Premier League by two points from Arsenal with a 3-1 win against West Ham on the final day of the season giving them the title.
But arch-rivals Man Utd took any hope of a Double away from Man City on Saturday by beating them 2-1 in the FA Cup final at Wembley in an unexpected result.
Guardiola has one year to run on his existing contract at the Etihad Stadium with speculation recently that the Spaniard could choose to leave at the end of next season.
And now the Daily Mail insist that Guardiola is ‘expected to call time on a spell of unprecedented dominance’ at Man City with sources insisting that it ‘will be his last at the Etihad Stadium’.
The report adds:
‘The club’s hierarchy fear that Guardiola’s ninth year will represent the end. While City stress that there has been no formal indication either way from the 52-year-old, multiple sources within the industry and City have openly discussed the prospect of an impending departure over recent months.’
Man City, who the Daily Mail claim ‘will give Guardiola space to make a final decision on his future’ – were charged in February 2023 with 115 alleged breaches of the Premier League’s financial fair play rules with the Citizens strongly denying any wrongdoing.
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There has been talk that Man City could face “expulsion” from the Premier League and one sports lawyer insists that it “wouldn’t be just hyperbole” if they were found of guilty of the alleged breaches.
An unnamed sports lawyer told The Athletic: “You would have to think that the penalty would be absolutely huge. Expulsion from the Premier League wouldn’t be just hyperbole. It would be a realistic outcome if they were found guilty of the charges.
“If, on the other hand, some of the charges like those involving Mancini aren’t as clear-cut as people think and we’re talking about multiple PSR breaches, you might be looking at a 30-point deduction.
“There are probably four outcomes; they’re acquitted, there’s a huge fine and small points deduction, there’s a huge points deduction or they’re kicked out of the league. But we just don’t know without seeing the in-depth evidence. And just because someone has been charged 115 times, it doesn’t mean they’re guilty.”
