Pep Guardiola Says He Will 'Try to Stay' at Manchester City Next Season

Gill Clark @@gillclarkyFeatured Columnist IIDecember 23, 2019

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 21: Pep Guardiola, Manager of Manchester City looks on prior to the Premier League match between Manchester City and Leicester City at Etihad Stadium on December 21, 2019 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said Monday he will "try to stay" at the Premier League club next season.

Guardiola told reporters he is happy at the Etihad Stadium but has to wait and see if he deserves a new contract with the Premier League champions:

"This is my fourth season, next season will be the fifth because I try to stay next season. It is a long time. I am incredibly good here. I have to see if I deserve a new contract. The level has increased a lot and expectations are higher and we have to see if we can handle it. It is not just up to me.

“Now we have a break with the family and prepare (for) Wolves and the rest. We have time to think about it in the future."

The Spaniard's current contract with the club runs until 2021. He has previously said he plans to see out the deal and has no plans to leave early:

Reuters @Reuters
Pep Guardiola reiterated his commitment to serving the full term of his contract with Manchester City and denied reports that the contract had a 'break clause' that could allow him to leave at the end of the season https://t.co/vRf5e3oLZQ https://t.co/sImh7Sssj8

✨ Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content

Guardiola has enjoyed great success since joining Manchester City in 2016. He has guided the Citizens to two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and two League Cups, racking up records along the way:

OptaJoe @OptaJoe
100 – Man City’s haul of 100 points is the most won by an English top-flight side in a single campaign. Ton. https://t.co/lvrYzxP59x

OptaJoe @OptaJoe
157 - Manchester City have scored 157 goals in all competitions this season, the most by any side in English top-flight history, overtaking their own record from 2013-14. Entertainers. #MUNMCI

Yet the Spaniard has never managed a club for more than four years in his career.

He left Barcelona after a glittering four-year spell that brought a glut of trophies, including two UEFA Champions League titles.

Guardiola took a year off and then spent three years at Bayern Munich, winning three Bundesliga titles with the German giants before joining City.

However, he appears unlikely to win a third Premier League title with Sky Blues in 2019-20. The champions are already 11 points behind leaders Liverpool and have played a game more than the Reds.

Manchester City's decline this season suggests a squad overhaul may be needed, although Guardiola has said "we don’t have to rebuild too much," per Goal's Chris Burton.

The club will also need to find a replacement for assistant manager Mikel Arteta, who has been appointed Arsenal's permanent boss.

Guardiola's latest comments suggest he will be around next season, but it still remains to be seen if he is willing to extend his tenure with the club past 2021.