Pep Guardiola has addressed his future ahead of Manchester City's Premier League clash against Liverpool on Sunday
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Pep Guardiola, manager of Manchester City during the UEFA Champions League match against Feyenoord
Pep Guardiola, manager of Manchester City during the UEFA Champions League match against Feyenoord
(Image: Photo by Alex Livesey - Danehouse/Getty Images)
Pep Guardiola has warned he won't stay at a club where he feels like he's the problem but insists his work at Manchester City is not yet done. The 53-year-old has been in charge of the Manchester club since 2016 and has enjoyed a successful, trophy-laden eight years so far.
He has won six Premier League titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups and the Champions League in that time. Guardiola put pen to paper on a new two-year contract only last week, keeping him at the club until 2027.
However, City are in the midst of a torrid run of results as they sit on six games without a win. It's arguably the first time in his Etihad tenure that his position has been called into question by some sections of the media, but Guardiola believes he has enough credit in the bank to avoid the sack and is determined to turn things around.
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“I was in Barcelona. I would say my club, where I was born. I was there for four years, 14 titles. I had Messi, the best player ever. Neymar was coming - and I said ‘I’m leaving'," he told the media in a press conference this week. “People asked ‘why are you leaving your hometown with this generational player and with Xavi, Iniesta, Puyol, all the players that changed the world, won World Cups and European Cups?’
“I left because I felt it - and here is the same. If I extend, it’s because I feel it. I'm not sitting here just for what I've done.
“Still I'm happy, still I want to try. But I don't want to stay in the place where I feel I'm a problem. I don't want to just because the contract is there. My chairman knows it. I asked him to give me the chance to try to come back - especially when everybody comes back (from injury) and you see what happens.
“It would have been easy for me to go while we were doing well, but I don't want to now. I had the feeling that I still have a job to do and I want to do it. I want to do it.”
City have an opportunity to change their fortunes when they take on Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday afternoon. Arne Slot's side, on the other hand, will be determined to extend the lead over their rivals to 11 points with a significant victory.