Four signs this really is Pep Guardiola’s final season at Manchester City | OneFootball

After 10 years at the Etihad, there is increasing speculation that Pep Guardiola could be in his final season at Manchester City, but has the man himself given any clues this year?

Pretty much ever since Guardiola passed the four seasons he spent at Barcelona and the three he spent at Bayern, there have been questions over when Guardiola will walk away from the Etihad.

He is second on the list of longest-serving current managers in the English Football League, but could this be the year he walks away? Here are some signs we may be witnessing the final days of Guardiola in Manchester.

Increasingly vague answers in press conferences

Deciphering a Pep Guardiola press conference sometimes feels like trying to do a Rubik’s cube with your eyes closed, but there has been an increasing theme of uncertainty in his pre-match meetings this season.

In late 2025, he gave his biggest indication yet that he could be leaving by responding “who knows” when asked what’s going to happen in the future. In the same month, he reminded everyone he “won’t be here forever.”

More recently, he suggested the future will be bright for City after their Real Madrid exit, notably referring to City rather than ‘us’.

Of course, we may be reading too much into it, but more than ever this year, Guardiola’s press conferences have left the door open to a potential imminent exit.

Speaking out against City’s owners

Guardiola has never been one to hide his humanitarian beliefs, but this season in particular, he has been going out of his way to talk about issues such as Gaza.

In the past, the accusation has been that Guardiola is happy to shine a light on issues such as Gaza but is quiet about the activities of his employers, but this season marked a change as he directly spoke about Sudan.

It is a country which Man City’s owners are accused of involvement in, and could this be a sign that Guardiola knows his days are numbered at the club? Upsetting their hierarchy is not something even as secure in their position as Guardiola normally would do.

League Cup celebrations

The League Cup is also downplayed as a competition a few levels below the Champions League and the Premier League, even one below the FA Cup, but Guardiola’s celebrations did not suggest anything of the like.

When City scored their second, he bolted down the touchline and picked up a yellow card. He was seen with tears in his eyes as he hugged his daughter post-game, and Guardiola had the look of a man who had just won his first major trophy, not someone who had just won their 34th.

It may be reading too much into it, but perhaps Guardiola wanted to savour what could well be his final trophy with City.

A side built for the future

When Sir Alex Ferguson retired from management of Manchester United, he left behind a squad that was at its natural conclusion.

Key players were in their 30s. Robin van Persie, who was crucial to Ferguson, was very much a here-and-now player rather than one for the future.

With hindsight, then, it is hardly surprising that United fell off, even if the quickness of it was.

The difference with City is Guardiola has already overseen an overhaul. Long-time servants such as Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gündogan and Ederson left in the summer; in their place, the likes of Rayan Cherki, Rijani Reignes, James Trafford and Rayan Ait0noruti were brought in.

The result is City has a squad with the joint fourth-lowest average age, behind only Tottenham, Chelsea and Sunderland.

Of course, this could be for selfish reasons and Guardiola fancies adding a few more trophies to his record, but he could also have done it with the view to ensuring that when he does eventually leave, the whole ship doesn’t sink without him.