Guardiola Is Leaving Manchester City: 10 Years, 20 Trophies, and Maresca Next

Pep Guardiola is leaving Manchester City. After ten extraordinary years, 20 trophies, six Premier League titles, and the Champions League, the greatest manager in the club’s history will step down at the end of this season. Multiple reports confirmed on Monday and Tuesday that Guardiola has already told his players he is going, that his departure will be formally confirmed on Sunday after City’s final game against Aston Villa, and that Enzo Maresca — his former assistant and the manager who won Chelsea the Conference League and the Club World Cup — has already agreed in principle to succeed him. The era that transformed Manchester City from a wealthy, middling Premier League club into the dominant force in English football for a decade is over. Football will never quite be the same.

Guardiola Confirms Departure to Players: What We Know

The timeline of Guardiola’s departure becoming confirmed is rapid and definitive. According to The Guardian and BBC Sport, Guardiola told Manchester City players he is leaving at a meeting ahead of Tuesday’s fixture at Bournemouth. The announcement to players before the penultimate game of the season is a clear signal that the departure is settled — this is not speculation or negotiation. It is the end.

The formal public announcement is expected “some time on Sunday” — the date of City’s final game of the season against Aston Villa at the Etihad. According to CBS Sports, the plan is to allow Guardiola’s decade at City to be properly celebrated with a trophy parade on Monday before attention turns to the future. Transfer journalist Nicolo Schira confirmed on X that Maresca has reached “an agreement in principle with Manchester City for a contract until 2028 with the option for 2029” and that City “have designated the former Chelsea manager as Guardiola’s replacement if Pep leaves.” The word “if” in Schira’s statement is the formal diplomatic hedge. The substance — Maresca’s deal agreed, Guardiola telling players he’s gone — is beyond equivocation.

Guardiola himself, when asked about the reports following Saturday’s FA Cup final win over Chelsea, deflected with characteristic style. “What rumours? Have a lovely evening,” he told TNT Sports, smiling, before ending the interview. The smile was the tell. A manager genuinely planning to stay would not smile at that moment. He would deny it forcefully. Guardiola did neither. He walked away.

The Legacy: What Guardiola Built at Manchester City

The numbers are straightforward. The meaning is not. Pep Guardiola arrived at Manchester City in June 2016. He leaves — when the confirmation comes — having won 20 major trophies in ten seasons. That total is the highest by any manager at a single English club in modern football history. The full list of what he won in Manchester:

The raw trophies tell part of the story. They don’t tell all of it. Guardiola didn’t just win. He changed the way football was played in England. Before him, Premier League football had occasionally seen dominant teams — Wenger’s Arsenal, Ferguson’s United, Mourinho’s Chelsea — but none had transformed the structural, tactical and cultural expectations of what top-flight football should look like. City under Guardiola played possession football of a kind England had rarely seen at the top level. Ball-playing centre-backs. Inverted wingers. The false nine. The Pep Roulette of position-switching that baffled opponents and occasionally confused fans. The most theatrical high defensive line in the history of the Premier League.

His own summary, given in a rare moment of satisfaction to talkSPORT after the FA Cup win, said everything: “19 titles in 10 years is not bad. They know they don’t need to wait until I’m leaving, they know I have been fun. So 19 titles — fight for 20 in 10 years — it’s not bad, honestly.” The 20th came on Saturday. It may have been his final act on the Wembley stage he made his own.

Enzo Maresca: The Man Set to Replace a Legend

The succession plan is not scrambled. It is precise. Enzo Maresca, 46 years old, Italian, former City assistant, former Leicester Championship-winning manager, former Chelsea head coach — knows the Manchester City culture from the inside. He worked under Guardiola at City from 2020 to 2022, managing the Elite Development Squad to a Premier League 2 title before leaving for management opportunities of his own. He then guided Leicester to the Championship title and Premier League promotion in 2023-24 before the Chelsea appointment came.

The Chelsea experience was complicated. He won the Conference League and the Club World Cup — genuine trophies — but left in January 2026 amid tensions with the club’s ownership structure over operational control. The manner of his exit was messy. The achievements beneath it were real. And the reporting now suggests that conversations with City began during the March 2026 international break — well before the current season ended — and have been progressing toward a formal agreement ever since.

What Maresca brings to City is exactly what the succession requires: philosophical continuity without imitative stagnation. He coached Guardiola’s football philosophy from inside the machine. He can implement the possession-based, high-pressing, positionally intelligent approach that City’s squad has been built to execute. He is not a radical change. He is the most credible available custodian of what Guardiola built. Whether he can maintain it — or develop it further — is the question that will define Manchester City’s next decade.

What City Fans Are Feeling Right Now

The emotional weight of Guardiola leaving Manchester City is unlike any other managerial departure in English football in the modern era. This is not a manager who was sacked, who had run his course, or who the club needed to move on from. This is a manager who built something extraordinary and is choosing to walk away from it at a time of his own selection. The distinction matters enormously to supporters.

City fans have known this moment was approaching. The contract extension in 2023, the one-year additions rather than multi-year commitments, the increasingly personal and philosophical reflections in his post-match interviews — the signals have been there for anyone who was watching. He said publicly last year: “I swear I’m not leaving.” He said it last week. Now, within days of those statements, the reports are unanimous and the players have been told. Football does not wait for perfect timing. It delivers when it delivers. EPLIndex captured the mood best: “Losing Guardiola means losing the manager who made City the benchmark for everyone else. If this is goodbye, the only proper response is gratitude. What a decade. What a manager. What a ride.”

What Happens Next: The 115 Charges and the Summer Ahead

Guardiola’s departure also coincides with the continued unresolved status of Manchester City’s 115 financial charges — the Premier League investigation into alleged financial rule breaches that has been ongoing for several years. The BBC’s piece this week — “Could history be rewritten? Guardiola, Man City and the 115 charges” — raises the question of whether the hearing’s outcome could retroactively affect trophies won during his tenure. Guardiola has consistently denied any wrongdoing and has maintained that he was not informed of any violations. The charges relate to the club, not the manager individually. But the timing of his departure, occurring while the charges remain unresolved, will inevitably generate speculation about whether the investigation influenced his thinking.

The summer ahead for Manchester City involves: confirming Guardiola’s departure officially on Sunday, a potential bus parade on Monday, beginning the Maresca era, managing the transfer window with a new manager’s philosophy to consider, and navigating the 115 charges process. It is one of the most complex off-field summers any Premier League club has faced. Maresca’s ability to handle the non-football complexity alongside the football demands will be as important as his tactical input from day one.

Where Will Guardiola Go Next?

The global football world is already speculating. National team jobs — Brazil, England, France — have been discussed in connection with Guardiola at various points. A sabbatical is possible. A return to Barcelona, the club that formed him as a manager, is the romantic option. The German national team vacancy could emerge if Nagelsmann’s contract situation changes post-World Cup. Guardiola is 55 years old. He has decades of management ahead of him if he wants them. The question is not whether he will manage again. The question is where, and when, and who he will build his next extraordinary thing with.

Watch Guardiola’s Final Games Live: What’s Left

If the reports are correct, Pep Guardiola has two matches left as Manchester City manager. Tonight: Bournemouth away (May 19, 8pm BST) — a result that could hand Arsenal the Premier League title or keep City’s own championship hopes alive. Sunday May 24: Aston Villa at home — his final game, after which the formal announcement is expected. Both matches air on Sky Sports Premier League in the UK and USA Network in the United States.

For football fans who want to watch every remaining Guardiola match — and every City fixture under Maresca from next season — without being tied to a single broadcaster’s package, TOP IPTV STREAM carries Sky Sports Premier League, USA Network, DAZN, and every Premier League broadcaster globally in HD and 4K. Start a free 24-hour trial today and watch Guardiola’s final act in Manchester.

FAQ: Pep Guardiola Leaving Manchester City

Is Pep Guardiola definitely leaving Manchester City?

Yes, according to multiple authoritative sources. The Guardian and BBC Sport both reported that Guardiola has told Manchester City players he is leaving at the end of the 2025-26 season. His formal departure is expected to be confirmed publicly on Sunday May 24 after City’s final match against Aston Villa. Enzo Maresca has reportedly reached an agreement in principle to succeed him. CBS Sports confirmed the story, citing “multiple reports in England” and noting Guardiola’s departure would follow their final league game on Sunday. Guardiola’s own reaction — smiling and deflecting without denial when asked after the FA Cup final — aligned with the reporting.

How many trophies did Pep Guardiola win at Manchester City?

Pep Guardiola won 20 major trophies during his ten-year tenure at Manchester City from 2016 to 2026. These include six Premier League titles — including four in consecutive seasons from 2020-21 to 2023-24, the first time any manager achieved that — one UEFA Champions League in 2022-23, which was part of City’s historic treble, four FA Cups, and seven League Cup titles. The 20th trophy came on May 16, 2026, with the FA Cup win over Chelsea at Wembley. Guardiola himself summarised it: “19 titles — fight for 20 in 10 years — it’s not bad, honestly.”

Who is replacing Pep Guardiola at Manchester City?

Enzo Maresca is set to replace Pep Guardiola as Manchester City manager. Transfer journalist Nicolo Schira confirmed that Maresca has reached “an agreement in principle with Manchester City for a contract until 2028 with the option for 2029.” Maresca previously worked as a coach under Guardiola at City between 2020 and 2022, managing the club’s Elite Development Squad and winning the Premier League 2 title. He subsequently managed Leicester to Championship promotion and Chelsea to the Conference League and Club World Cup titles before departing Stamford Bridge in January 2026. His knowledge of City’s playing culture and tactical philosophy makes him the clearest available choice for continuity.

Why is Guardiola leaving Manchester City?

The formal reason for Guardiola’s departure has not been officially stated by the club or the manager. The broader context includes a decade of extraordinary intensity, a season marked by uncertainty around the Premier League title race and the ongoing 115 financial charges investigation, and the natural professional cycle that has seen Guardiola stay at previous clubs for four to five years before moving on. His longest managerial tenure anywhere is now ending at City after ten years. Whether the 115 charges process influenced his decision has been speculated but not confirmed. Guardiola himself, when asked about his future following the FA Cup final, responded: “What rumours? Have a lovely evening” — ending the interview with a smile that spoke loudly without saying anything directly.

When will Manchester City officially confirm Guardiola’s departure?

According to reports, Manchester City’s departure confirmation for Guardiola is expected “some time on Sunday” — May 24, 2026, the date of the club’s final Premier League fixture against Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium. The plan is for the announcement to allow Guardiola’s decade at the club to be celebrated properly, with a trophy parade reported for Monday May 25. Guardiola has already informed his players of the decision ahead of Tuesday’s match at Bournemouth. The formal announcement to the public and media is the final step in a process that appears to be already fully settled between all parties.

Final Thoughts: The End of an Era That Changed English Football

Ten years. Twenty trophies. Six Premier League titles. The Champions League. The historic treble. Four consecutive league titles. A generation of Manchester City supporters who grew up knowing their club as the best in England. A generation of every other club’s supporters who grew up watching their teams try and fail to find an answer to what Guardiola built at the Etihad. That is the scale of what ends when Pep Guardiola walks out of the Etihad Stadium for the last time as Manchester City’s manager.

Maresca will inherit something extraordinary and something fragile simultaneously. The playing squad is exceptional. The club structure is elite. But the soul of what City became under Guardiola — the attention to detail, the tactical evolution, the psychological environment that made players produce the best football of their careers — is the thing that no appointment can simply transfer. It has to be built again. Differently. On the same foundation but with a different architect. That is Maresca’s job now. Nobody said it would be easy.

Watch Guardiola’s final games as Manchester City manager — Bournemouth tonight and Aston Villa on Sunday — live on TOP IPTV STREAM — Sky Sports Premier League, USA Network, and every Premier League broadcaster globally in HD and 4K from $15 per month. Start a free 24-hour trial today and witness the end of football’s greatest modern dynasty.