Pep Guardiola has decided to step down as Manchester City manager at the end of this season and ahead of his final game on Sunday, he's admitted to 'hiding' one regret for nearly a decade
Pep Guardiola interview
Pep Guardiola opened up on the regret after announcing his exit (Image: Sky Sports)
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Pep Guardiola has revealed that his one regret as Manchester City manager was getting rid of Joe Hart. In his first major decision after taking charge in the summer of 2016, Guardiola ruthlessly told City legend Hart that he wasn't part of his plans.
The Catalan wanted a goalkeeper who was more comfortable on the ball, so City signed Claudio Bravo from Barcelona and made Hart available for transfer. Having been at City for a decade, the England star left to join Italian side Torino on loan and never played for the club again.
Meanwhile, Bravo struggled to adapt to the rigours of the Premier League and City moved to sign Ederson the following year. The Brazilian went on to be Guardiola's No.1 for the next eight seasons, helping the legendary manager win the vast majority of his 20 trophies with the club.
But if the City boss could turn back the clock, he'd give Hart a chance. "I wanna confess something. I have just one (regret)," the 55-year-old told Sky Sports after confirming that he'll leave City after their final game of the season against Aston Villa on Sunday.
"I have regrets when you take a lot of decisions, a lot, a lot of decisions, you make mistakes. But there is one regret that I have hid deep inside for many years.
"I didn't give Joe Hart the chance to be with me, to prove himself how good (of) a goalkeeper he was. And I should have done.
"Not because - all respect to Claudio, all respect for Edi, who came in and was important - but in that moment, I thought, 'Okay, Joe, let's try to do it together and if it doesn't work, then okay, we change it because it happened'.
"But it happened. You know, life is sometimes, I have to take decisions and sometimes I'm not fair enough."
Hart spent the 2016-17 season in Serie A before returning to the Premier League with West Ham for another ill-fated loan spell. It was during his time at West Ham that he lost his place in the England squad, missing the 2018 World Cup after being usurped by Jordan Pickford.
Manchester City's English goalkeeper Joe Hart (L) takes his place on the substitutes bench for the English Premier League football match between Manchester City and Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England, on August 13, 2016. Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola dropped goalkeeper Joe Hart in favour of Willy Caballero for his opening Premier League game against Sunderland on August 13. AFP/PAUL ELLIS/RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. (Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Pep Guardiola would go back and give Joe Hart a chance(Image: PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
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Guardiola labelled Hart a 'legend' upon his departure from City, where he lifted two Premier League titles, one FA Cup and two League Cups. He also won the Premier League Golden Glove four times.
"It wasn't painful, it was frustrating," Hart recalled on the High Performance Podcast. "But it was a great man, Pep Guardiola, that had a vision I didn't fit into. It was frustrating... what he said is, 'That's a good goalkeeper, but he isn't for me' which is what it is."
Hart went on to have permanent spells with Burnley and Tottenham before finishing his playing career by winning trophies at Celtic. He's now a pundit and will be part of the BBC's coverage of the World Cup this summer.