Manchester City Plans for Future as Pep Guardiola’s Tenure Faces Scrutiny

As the 2025-26 season progresses, discussions surrounding Pep Guardiola’s future as Manchester City manager intensify. Following a report from David Ornstein of The Athletic suggesting that ‘sources outside of Manchester City’ believe this could be Guardiola’s last season, speculation about his departure has surged. Reports indicate that former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca is Manchester City’s primary candidate to succeed Guardiola should he choose to leave this summer. However, Guardiola’s recent comments hint that the club may not need a replacement anytime soon.

Enzo Maresca is the frontrunner to replace Pep Guardiola if he exits Manchester City.

Jacob Steinberg previously reported for The Guardian that Enzo Maresca stands as the leading candidate to take over from Guardiola if he departs at the end of this season. Steinberg notes that positive discussions have occurred between City and Maresca. Furthermore, Guardiola has yet to confirm whether he will stay on as manager after this season. In light of this, Manchester City has established a contingency plan that would see Maresca stepping in for Guardiola.

Has Pep Guardiola hinted at his future plans?

While it appears that Manchester City has a contingency plan if Guardiola leaves, he may have provided a clue about his own future. Ahead of Manchester City’s upcoming Premier League match against Everton, Guardiola was asked about his mindset during this season’s closing stretch. His response hinted at his outlook: “The process between games, I’m more calm than last season. Last season was 24 hours thinking about what happens if we won’t qualify for the Champions League. I felt that a lot.”

“I can imagine when a team is not relegated, this kind of stuff, it changes clubs, the players, financially you can’t do investment for good players. At the end, it’s the reason why the team has success, because they have good players.”

“But this season, we won the Carabao Cup, Final of the FA Cup again, still fighting against this Arsenal. So what can I say? It’s really good. I’d love to go through in the Champions League, but the level is higher and it’ll be good learnings for me for the next season.”

Analyzing the situation with Pep Guardiola and Enzo Maresca.

It is not surprising to see Manchester City preparing plans in the event that Pep Guardiola exits the club. An organization like City would naturally want to avoid being caught off guard if their manager decides to leave. The fact that they have approached Enzo Maresca indicates proactive planning on their part. However, this does not necessarily mean that Guardiola intends to leave anytime soon.

For quite some time, my personal belief has been that Guardiola does not appear poised to walk away in the near future. He seems fully committed to the journey with his evolving team. Recent performances indicate that his squad has made significant strides this season. Guardiola appears energized and ready to lead the team toward further achievements. His remarks about deriving lessons from Manchester City’s past Champions League experiences suggest a focus on the future rather than an imminent departure.

In summary, while Manchester City has prepared for the eventuality of Pep Guardiola’s departure by positioning Enzo Maresca as his potential successor, Guardiola himself does not seem inclined to leave his role. His comments regarding planning for the next season’s Champions League are telling of a manager dedicated to his current responsibilities.