Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has signed a new two-year contract with the Premier League club.
“Manchester City are pleased to announce that Pep Guardiola has signed a new two-year deal with the club,” City said in a statement. “The contract, which now runs to the summer of 2023, sees Guardiola’s commitment to City extended to seven years from his arrival in 2016.”
“Pep’s current five-year stay is already the longest commitment he has made to a football club since becoming a manager in 2008 – and this extension will see him overtake Joe Mercer and put him second on the Club’s list of longest-serving post-war managers.”
Ever since I arrived at Manchester City I have been made to feel so welcome in the club and in the city itself,” Guardiola said. “Since then we have achieved a great deal together, scored goals, won games and trophies, and we are all very proud of that success.”
The news will extinguish any hope that Barcelona had held of tempting the Catalan back to Camp Nou. Presidential candidate Victor Font had brought it up as a possibility he’d look in to, even though Guardiola himself has always played down the possibility of him returning to the club.
Born in Santpedor, Guardiola spent eleven years as a first-team player at Camp Nou before spending time in Italy, Qatar and Mexico.
As a coach, Guardiola built one of the greatest teams of all time at Barcelona between 2008 and 2012, winning three consecutive La Liga titles, two Copa del Reys, three Spanish Super Cups, two Champions Leagues, two European Super Cups and two Club World Cups.
Guardiola then spent a year in New York on sabbatical before a three-season stint in Germany with Bayern Munich. He joined Manchester City in 2016 and has won two Premier League titles, the FA Cup, three League Cups and two Community Shields at the Etihad Stadium.