Sergio Aguero responds to exit talk around Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola | OneFootball

Manchester City legend Sergio Agüero has dismissed growing speculation over Pep Guardiola’s future, insisting the debate is creating “unnecessary noise” at the club.

Guardiola’s contract with City runs until 2027, but talk of the Catalan leaving at the end of the ongoing season has been gaining momentum over the course of the last few months amid links to former Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca.

After almost 10 years in charge at the Etihad Stadium, Pep Guardiola has changed the club’s identity, making Manchester City a dominant force in England and Europe and winning the club’s first UEFA Champions League title in 2023 as part of a historic treble.

Manchester City have remained competitive, strengthened by Guardiola’s positional structure and evolving tactical adjustments, competing for both domestic titles and European glory despite the external speculation.

Recruitment – largely directed by Portuguese sporting director Hugo Viana – has been aligned with long-term planning, blending experience with youth to ensure continuity beyond any single campaign.

Questions about succession and life after Pep Guardiola have come up even with this level of performance, and elite clubs like City too often prioritise long-term planning discussions, especially when a manager like Pep Guardiola is nearing the end of his contract.

However, Manchester City have shown little interest in publicly discussing hypothetical situations in front of the media. And it was within that context that Sergio Aguero has addressed the issue in an interview with Trivela, translated and relayed by Sport Witness.

The club’s all-time leading goalscorer, who worked closely with Pep Guardiola during Manchester City’s most decorated period, was direct in his assessment.

“Pep still has one more year on his contract,” Agüero said. “It is a debate that does not help anyone and only creates unnecessary noise around something that should not even be on the table right now. When the time comes, it will be resolved. It is not something to worry about.”

Sergio Agüero’s comments highlight that performance should be the focus, asserting that if the position did become available with Pep Guardiola leaving, City would have no trouble finding good candidates.

From an institutional perspective, City’s hierarchy have long positioned succession planning as a crucial objective. Regardless of when the change happens, the model, executive continuity and effective recruitment strategy are all meant to make the company resilient.

Pep Guardiola’s impact has been colossal, but the system that supports him has been equally competent and precisely as supportive as envisioned. For now, the message from City is one of calmness with Guardiola’s contract running for a further year.