PEP’S SECRET RELEASE CLAUSE
Contract agreement means he could leave at end of season… with City chiefs big admirers of Pochettino
PEP GuArdIoLA has a break clause in his contract which could see him leave Manchester City at the end of this season.
Sportsmail can reveal that the deal the Spaniard signed last year — which saw him extend his original contract until 2021 — included an agreement that he could depart at the conclusion of this campaign should certain stipulations that satisfy the club be met.
City officials are confident that, despite an underwhelming season to date which has seen City fall a hefty 14 points behind runaway leaders Liverpool, Guardiola will honour his deal. However, contingency plans will be looked at with officials at the Etihad Stadium known to be admirers of former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino.
The revelation may add uncertainty to what has been a disappointing campaign. Last Saturday’s Manchester derby defeat by united has all but ended any hopes of a third successive title. However, there is a desire to win the Champions League and City qualified from their group with ease.
only last month Guardiola, 48, said he was ‘open’ to a new contract. This season is his fourth at City. Previously, Guardiola
spent four years at Barcelona, winning La Liga three times and the Champions League twice. After a break he joined Bayern Munich, where he spent three years, winning the Bundesliga in each of his three seasons. After succeeding Manuel Pellegrini in 2016, Guardiola led City to back-to-back Premier League titles after finishing third in his first year. ‘I’m open to it, yes,’ he said, when asked about extending his deal. ‘It is not about what the club wants or not. For me, I want to see my players and the reaction of my players and everything. It is not as simple as I want to extend. I want to see the club, I want to see the players, I want to see how we are still working together.’ Guardiola is known for his obsessive approach. In recent weeks, he has shown signs of frustration following a patchy run of form in the league which included the defeat by United, a draw at Newcastle United and a loss at Liverpool. While nothing can stop him from walking out of the job at any stage, a break clause ensures that, were he to decide to leave, he would not be breaching a contract. However, City officials believe this will not be the case. City’s footballing decisions are led by the Spanish duo of chief executive Ferran Soriano and football director Txiki Begiristain, who both worked at Barcelona. Pochettino won admirers for his work across the city at Espanyol, where he was manager from 2009-2012.