Guardiola opens door for Man City exit – Could he return to FC Barcelona? | OneFootball

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola made a surprising announcement about his future after Manchester City’s recent game against West Ham.

The 53-year-old manager guided his team to a 3-1 victory over West Ham at the Etihad Stadium, securing their fourth consecutive Premier League title.

However, despite this success, Guardiola has revealed that he feels he is running out of new goals to reach.

“The reality is I’m closer to leaving than to staying,” Guardiola told the reporters during the post-match press conference. “It’s eight years, will be nine.”

Reflecting on his accomplishments, Guardiola expressed a sense of fulfilment and hinted at the possibility of moving on to new challenges.

The seasoned manager, known for his tactical brilliance and innovative strategies, seems to be contemplating the next phase of his career.

“Right now my feeling is I want to stay next season. We talked with the club, we have time to talk next season because I have to see the players as well, if they follow me, they follow us, for many reasons. I will stay and during the season we will talk when calm.”

He had this feeling before

Pep Guardiola won his fourth successive Premier League title with Manchester City this season. (Photo by MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP via Getty Images)

Asked in the press conference if he feels like he has completed English football and what he felt was left to achieve, Guardiola shrugged his shoulders and said: “I had that feeling last season.

“When we won in Istanbul (in the Champions League final) I said, ‘It’s over, what am I doing here? It’s over, there’s nothing left.

“But I have a contract, I’m here and still enjoying. Some of the moments I was a bit tired but some of the moments I loved, and after I said ‘OK, we are here’.

“(We) start winning games, looking good, different players, new players and I start to think about, ‘No one has done four in a row, why don’t we try?’ And now I feel ‘It’s done, so what next?’ I don’t know right now,” he admitted.

Is a return to Barcelona possible?

In all fairness, no!

Barcelona are grappling with troubling finances and while Joan Laporta wants Xavi to leave, the reality is, Barcelona cannot afford that as well.

If Barcelona want Xavi to discontinue, they will suffer a loss of €20 million, and that is just the tip of the iceberg as this cost does not include the expenses associated with appointing a new technical staff associated with the coach.

This means even if Guardiola part ways with Manchester City, which is unlikely, Barcelona will have no financial strength to acquire him.