Manchester City beat Chelsea 1-0 at Wembley on Saturday to win the FA Cup, and Pep Guardiola used the victory to cool, at least for now, the latest wave of exit talk around him.
The City manager, 55 years old, has one year left on his contract until 2027, but the widespread feeling in football is that he is expected to go, with Enzo Maresca seen as the likely replacement if he does. Club sources had not confirmed either that Guardiola will leave or that Maresca will take over.
Guardiola had already said before the final that he still had one year left on his deal, and after the win he struck a more upbeat note. “I know the guys, I know how they feel, the commitment to the club, very professional. I’m pretty sure we’ll be there in the next years,” he said.
The remarks landed against a backdrop of fresh noise around the Etihad. Sky Sports News reported before the final that two of Guardiola’s most trusted coaches would leave this summer, adding to the sense that City may be heading into a wider reset. Guardiola’s future has been the subject of constant rumours around Manchester City, even as the club remain focused on their final two Premier League games of the season.
That focus matters because the season is not finished yet. City hope to take the Premier League title race into the final day by beating Bournemouth on Tuesday night, while Arsenal are due to face Burnley on Monday Night Football. Every point still counts, but the Guardiola question now hangs over the run-in as much as the table does.
For Bernardo Silva, who is set to leave Manchester City this summer, the manager’s influence is no abstraction. “He changed the way I see football,” Silva said after the FA Cup win. “Eighty per cent of my career was with him as my manager. All the things I hoped to achieve were with him. The relationship we have is very strong with the frustrations and the achievements.”
Silva also said Guardiola’s future was up to him, a reminder that the decision, if there is one, has not been publicly made. For now, City have a trophy, a title race that still has life, and a manager whose next move remains the club’s biggest unanswered question.
