Gary Neville has given his verdict on Pep Guardiola, who is reportedly set to leave Manchester City, as he prepares to leave the Etihad Stadium this summer.
Josep Guardiola is set to leave Manchester City this summer (Image: Catherine Ivill/AMA)
Pep Guardiola and Manchester City will be “deeply disappointed” that news of the Spaniard’s impending departure was broken on the eve of the match. That’s the view of Gary Neville, who claims he is “surprised” on Monday when it was leaked that Guardiola would be leaving City at the end of the season.
During Arsenal’s Premier League match against Burnley, the Daily Mail reported that Guardiola will leave City after Sunday’s final game of the season against Aston Villa. There are less than 24 hours left until City face Bournemouth in a crucial match for the Premier League title.
Neville, who was co-commentator for the Arsenal match on Sky Sports, shared his reaction to the news of Guardiola’s departure, saying: “I’m surprised that things are breaking down now, not just during this game, but the night before the Man City game. That’s game-changing news.”
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“I remember when I was at school and recently the news about Kenny Dalglish leaving Liverpool, Sir Alex Ferguson leaving Man United, Jurgen Klopp leaving Liverpool.
“Those are huge moments in football and I don’t think it’s the kind of news that Man City would release or want to release. If that were true, Man City would be very disappointed that it’s broken now and so would Pep Guardiola.”
Guardiola guided City to the FA Cup with a 1-0 victory over Chelsea at Wembley on Saturday. And it could be the Catalan’s final accolade as City manager after a trophy-filled decade in charge.
City still have a chance to win the Premier League, but they need to win their remaining two games against Bournemouth and Villa and will hope Arsenal drop a point at Crystal Palace.
Josep Guardiola to leave Manchester City this summer (Image: Getty Images)
Since moving to the Etihad Stadium in 2016, Guardiola has led City to six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented fourth in a row. He also led the Blues to their first and only Champions League title, along with three FA Cups, five League Cups and three Community Shields.
The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager had long been rumored to be leaving City at the end of the season, but the club began communicating this to key stakeholders ahead of Sunday’s announcement.
Guardiola’s contribution to City will be celebrated on Monday with an open-top bus parade through Manchester with players, women’s teams and academy teams.
Former Leicester City and Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has reportedly agreed to replace Guardiola at City. He was one of Guardiola’s assistants at City during the 2022/23 season before moving to manage the Foxes.
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