LESCOTT FEELS PEP’S CITY DESTINY
SIMON MULLOCK
BY
FORMER Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott believes Pep Guardiola’s squad can play a huge part in convincing the Catalan to stay at the Etihad.
Guardiola has just 12 months left on his contract as he goes into his seventh season as City boss — and the hope is he will commit himself to a new deal in the coming months.
And Lescott reckons Guardiola will find it tough to walk away from the team he has built if they can show him that four titles in five seasons is only the start of their success.
Lescott said: “Everyone at the club hopes Pep stays.
“Obviously only he knows the answer. In regards to what he’s done, whenever he chooses to leave it will be a sad day.
“We’ll accept it’s the right decision for him and his family. But for what he’s achieved, the standard of the team has gone up and so has the club’s status.
“Hopefully Pep doesn’t leave because
I honestly believe that as long as he’s in charge, City will be favourites to win every competition every year.
“If they keep on strengthening, given the age of the current squad, they will all be in their prime in the next three or four years.
“That would be tough to walk away from.”
City have gone for revolution rather than evolution this summer — cashing in on Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko and bringing in Erling Haaland and Kalvin Phillips.
Fernandinho has gone back to Brazil — meaning Kevin De Bruyne is now the only player who was at the club before Guardiola arrived.
And after dominating the
Premier League over the last decade, the expectation is for the
Blues to now crack Europe.
They suffered a cruel
Champions League semi-final CHAMPION Pep Guardiola defeat at Real Madrid last term after losing to Chelsea in the previous season’s final.
Lescott, 39, won two titles, the FA
Cup and the League Cup with City and also played in their first-ever game in the competition — a 1-1 draw against Napoli back in September 2011.
Now he works as a club ambassador and has been in demand during City’s pre-season tour of the United States.
Lescott added: “The Champions League is destined to come to City.
“Is it going to come this year? No one has a divine right to win the Champions League because it’s the pinnacle in terms of quality.
“If it comes this year, great. If it doesn’t then it’s bound to happen at some point.
“It’s hard. No one knows that more than Pep, but the players will put pressure on themselves
to get over the line.”