A former colleague of Pep Guardiola has warned that something may be wrong with the Manchester City manager as uncertainty persists over his future at the club. Guardiola has a contract until the end of next season and has previously hinted at retiring. He also took a 12-month sabbatical at the end of the 2011\u201312 campaign.<\/p>\n
Matthias Sammer, who worked with Guardiola in Munich, described their time together and expressed unease. “We worked together wonderfully for three years\u2014it was very, very good. I think I understood him quite well with his facial expressions, his gestures, his eyes, and his way of speaking,” Sammer said on his Sky Sport Germany podcast. “My gut feeling tells me something is wrong when I look at his face. When I see your eyes, when I see your face, and in other ways too, you really don\u2019t need to explain to clueless people what you are and who you are, and that you can\u2019t always win. I would advise him to take a deep breath.” <\/p>\n
Facing speculation over how long he will remain at City, Guardiola has repeatedly emphasised his contentment and his contractual position. “I have a contract. I said a thousand, million times,” he said in January when rumours began that former assistant Enzo Maresca was a consideration to replace him. “It’s 10 years here, I will leave one day but I have a contract. I’m happy. I want to fight with my team.<\/p>\n
“The hierarchy respect me, that was proved last season with what happened in this club\u2014we didn\u2019t win one game in two, three months. They supported me. I have one more year\u2019s contract. I like to be here, so we will see, you will see.” He has also joked in response to similar questions that he would quit Manchester City at “75 or 76” years of age.<\/p>\n
The immediate sporting picture offers context. City can still complete a second domestic treble in Guardiola\u2019s tenure after the first in 2018\u201319. The Carabao Cup is in the bag following last weekend’s triumph, the FA Cup remains attainable and the Premier League looks a much tougher prospect with Arsenal nine points clear and eight games to play. A domestic cup, or two, a fairly unremarkable achievement for a club with City\u2019s track record of success over the past 15 years, is the most likely outcome.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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