Pep Guardiola drops Man City bombshell moments after winning title as he reveals ‘I’m closer to leaving than staying’

PEP GUARDIOLA led Manchester City to a historic fourth Prem crown in a row — then hinted next season could be his last.

Guardiola’s City slickers became the first team to achieve the feat with victory over West Ham as two-goal Phil Foden, 23, labelled his team-mates the best Prem side ever.

PA

Yet after winning a sixth crown in his eight seasons in Manchester, their Spanish manager admitted he may call it a day when his contract expires 12 months down the line.

And Guardiola, 53, revealed he spent last summer wondering whether he had the motivation to go again after City had won the Treble.

Asked about his future amid Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool exit, said: “The reality is I am closer to leaving than staying. We have talked with the club — my feeling is that I want to stay now.

“So I will stay next season and during the season we will talk. But eight or nine years? We will see.”

There has become an unspoken acceptance among fans that Guardiola will NOT sign another contract when this one has run its course.

The eight years he has been in Manchester is already DOUBLE his previous longest reign as boss of Barcelona.

And he did reveal there were moments following the Champions League win over Inter Milan last term when he doubted if he could lift himself again.

After pipping Arsenal to this year’s title by two points, Guardiola added: “I had that feeling last year, thinking, ‘It’s over, I am finished, what is left?’

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“Then I thought, ‘I am here, OK’ and we started playing and winning games, there were new players and I started thinking of four in a row.

“Now four in a row is done so I think, ‘What next?’ Well no team has done back-to-back league and the FA Cup.

“But next season I do not exactly know what will be the motivation — it is difficult to know until everything is done.”

City’s dominance has come alongside being hit with 115 Financial Fair Play charges with the hearing still to be heard.

Player of the Season Foden, who hit two to KO West Ham, has no doubts.

He insisted: “Definitely. This means a bit more because no team has ever done it before — now we can say we are the first.

Man City's five key moments this season

A look at the five key moments in Man City's title winning campaign...

• Luton 1 – 2 Man City: City bounce back from a run of four games without a win to kick-start their unbeaten run.
• Newcastle 2 – 3 Man City: Kevin De Bruyne returns from injury to come off the bench and inspire a late turnaround against the Magpies.
• Man City 3 – 1 Man Utd: Phil Foden puts on a masterclass as City lay down a marker on their title ambitions and breeze past their local rivals in the process.
• Man City 0 – 0 Arsenal: A goalless draw that, although disappointing, meant City were still keeping pace with the teams around them and could maintain their spot in the title race. A loss could have put Arsenal out of sight of the Cityzens.
• Man City 4 – 1 Aston Villa: Following consecutive draws against title rivals Arsenal and Liverpool, City bounce back with a thumping of Unai Emery’s high-flying Villa to keep the pressure on the Gunners.

“It’s so hard to put into words what we’ve done. We have put ourselves in the history books.”

While Guardiola is seen as the world’s best coach, David Moyes, leaving after three years as Hammers chief, reckons his man management merits just as much praise.

Moyes said: “Everyone in football is in awe, I was going to say about his coaching, but it’s more than that.

“What a good man-manager he must be — either that or he’s got a hair-dryer in the background no one talks about! It looks like he has them on a string here.

“His ability to manage is unbelievable.

“This guy has just gone four in a row, and the myth about not ­winning it back-to-back has been blown sky-high.”

AP

Reuters