Guardiola to step down after incredible decade as City Manager | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola will step down as Manager of Manchester City this summer.

The Catalan, who joined City in July 2016, has had a transformative effect during his ten years in charge, and will leave having won 20 major trophies - making him the most successful Manager in our history.

Despite his departure as Manager of Manchester City, Pep will continue his relationship with the City Football Group, by taking up a role as a Global Ambassador. The role will see him giving technical advice to the clubs in the group, working on specific projects and collaborations.

“When I arrived, my first interview was with Noel Gallagher. I walked out thinking, ‘Okay… Noel is here? This will be fun,’” Guardiola said.

“And what a time we have had together. Don’t ask me the reasons I’m leaving. There is no reason, but deep inside, I know it’s my time. Nothing is eternal, if it was, I would be here. Eternal will be the feeling, the people, the memories, the love I have for my Manchester City.

“This is a city built from work. From graft. You see it in the colour of the bricks. From people who clocked in early, stayed late. The factories. The Pankhursts. The unions. The music. Simply the Industrial Revolution and how this changed the world. And I think I grew to understand that, and my teams did too.

“We worked. We suffered. We fought. And we did things our own way. Our way.

“Hard work comes in many forms. Trips to Bournemouth, when we lost the Premier League, and you were there. Trips to Istanbul, when you were there, too.

“Remember, the Manchester Arena attack, when this city showed the world what strength actually looks like? Not anger. Not fear. Just love. Community. Togetherness.  A city united.

“Remember, losing my mum during COVID and feeling this club carry me through it. The fans, the staff, the people of Manchester, you gave me strength when I needed it most. Cris, my kids, my whole family, you were there as always. Khaldoon, you were there too.

“Players don’t forget - every single instant, moment, me, my staff, this club, everything. What we have done, we have done it for all of you. And you have been just exceptional. You don’t know it yet, but you are leaving a legacy.

“So as my time comes to an end, be happy. Oasis are back again.

“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for trusting me.

“Thank you for pushing me.

“Thank you for loving me.

“Tony Walsh said in his unforgettable poem this is the place. I’m sorry, Tony: this is my place.

“Noel…I was right.

“It has been so f****** fun.

“Love you all.”

Reflecting on the news, Manchester City Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said: “Over the last ten years honesty and trust have formed the bedrock on which we have navigated every situation together with Pep – always understanding that we could find the right answer together. Today the right answer is for Pep to finish his journey as the Manager of Manchester City.

“There have been points along the way when he could have stopped, and it would have been enough. Somehow, Pep always found new energy and pushed on, finding different and innovative ways to continue winning and delivering success.

“As a result, the Club has a decade of memories and success to be forever grateful for, and much more than that, an evolution that cannot be undone.

“The unique approach that he brings to his coaching has allowed him to constantly challenge the accepted truths of our game. It is the reason that in the last ten years he has not only made Manchester City better - he has also made football better.”

Manchester City Chief Executive Officer Ferran Soriano added: “We have been privileged to work alongside Pep Guardiola for 10 years. We have witnessed his greatness and dedication, but also enjoyed his companionship, his friendship and humanity. What a privilege it has been for so many of us at Manchester City!

“Pep’s legacy is extraordinary and its true impact will be better assessed by Manchester City historians of the future. He contributed decisively to our journey to global excellence and his high standards will be a reference for our players and managers of the future.

“If there is something more difficult than winning, it is winning again. It requires incredible persistence, resilience and the humility to start again every year, with the same energy, again and again. This is what Pep did.

“Nobody would have believed, ten years ago, that we could win 20 trophies in this decade, playing entertaining football of such high quality. It was unthinkable… and yet it was done.

“As we celebrate the past, we are also very happy to know that Pep will stay with the group and we will be able use his knowledge and experience in so many of our other clubs to help managers and players.

“We will forever be grateful to Pep and cherish so many unforgettable memories. He is a City legend… forever.”

Guardiola’s record of six Premier League titles, one UEFA Champions League, three FA Cups, five League Cups, one FIFA Club World Cup, one UEFA Super Cup and three FA Community Shields tells only some of the story.

Undoubtedly a Premier League icon – and widely considered one of the greatest managers ever to grace the game – Guardiola has not only won with remarkable consistency during his spell at City but has also set a series of hugely significant records along the way.

The 100 Premier League points City collected in 2017/18 is an all-time competition record. Other Premier League records tumbled that season, too, as City scored a record 106 goals, recorded the most wins (32), most away points (50), biggest goal difference (+79) and biggest winning margin (19 points) in Premier League history.

It’s a season that will surely stand the test of time as the greatest in the competition’s history.

But things got even better for City and Guardiola.

The following campaign, he led his side to Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup and Community Shield success, as we became the first team in the history of English football to win all four domestic trophies in a single season.

The 2022/23 campaign saw City become just the second English side to win the Treble of UEFA Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup - football’s Holy Grail. Indeed, the Treble season is viewed as the greatest in Manchester City’s 132-year history.

The UEFA Super Cup, collected in Athens after a shootout victory over Sevilla, and FIFA Club World Cup, won after a commanding 4-0 win over Fluminense in Jeddah, soon followed, meaning City became the first English side in history to win the game’s five biggest club prizes in a calendar year.

In 2023/24, Guardiola led City to a fourth Premier League title in a row, as we became the first club in the history of English football to win four top-flight titles in succession. What had previously been seen as impossible was now very much City’s reality.

And now, in what will be his final act as City Manager, Guardiola has signed off by winning both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup in his final season in charge.

In short, he has overseen the most glittering period in City’s history, and is, without question, the greatest Manager the Club has ever had. He leaves as City’s longest serving Manager surpassing Les McDowall when he takes charge of his 593rd and final game against Aston Villa on Sunday.

Pep’s achievements have seen him named Premier League Manager of the Season on five occasions and he has claimed the League Managers Association’s Manager of the Year award three times - more recognition of his sustained excellence at the very highest levels of the game.

Beyond the goals, records, milestones, awards and trophies, Guardiola has, in the eyes of many, changed the English game forever. His stylistic influence, felt across the English football pyramid, has been seismic, as City under his guidance have played with outstanding attacking finesse.

It is perhaps this profound impact that will be his lasting legacy.

Pep has also become an adopted Mancunian across his ten years at the Club, solidified in the summer of 2025 when he was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Manchester at a ceremony in the historic Whitworth Hall, recognising his extraordinary contribution to the city of Manchester.

Join us in the coming days when we will celebrate Guardiola’s time in charge as the club looks to deliver a fitting tribute and farewell to a transformative Manager who will remain part of the Manchester City family forever.