Pep on whether he will quit football completely or not after being asked about his future in the game again.
Pep Guardiola says he will quit football entirely when he loses the passion to manage. He has spoken about not taking any other role apart from manager.
The Manchester City manager’s contract expires in the summer, and while he would consider managing somewhere, he has not decided whether to stay.
With five wins from their first seven games, City hopes to continue their winning streak when they visit Molineux on Sunday. It was there that they suffered their first league loss of the previous season. In his nine-year tenure, Guardiola is aiming for his seventh Premier League championship, and his fifth straight.
“I like my job, as I’ve said many times, I love what I do,” Guardiola said. “In terms of number of titles, I never, ever expected when I arrived here. I don’t speak on behalf of Txiki [Begiristain] but I think Txiki and myself never expected this when we arrived here.
“I still like coming here in the morning to work – I love it. I’m thinking about Wolves and the messages I have to tell [the players]. The images I have to see, the training I have to prepare. Still I like it – and this is the main reason I am a manager. When I don’t feel this – and not just at Man City – I will not be a manager and I will not even train, that’s for sure.”
Could Guardiola take a step back from day-to-day football to see himself move upstairs? “ would criticise my manager a lot,” he said, laughing. “I can’t do it. I like the green grass. To be the man in the tie, I do not like it.”
Prior to Thomas Tuchel’s selection as England manager this week, Guardiola was being touted to succeed Gareth Southgate in that role. It is believed that Guardiola was a serious applicant who made the short list after being contacted by the Football Association to see whether he was interested. The German subsequently won the position.
“I don’t know the reason why [there are so few English coaches in the Premier League],” Guardiola said. “I spoke to my players: how is Lee Carsley, how is Gareth Southgate? And they speak highly of them. Said they are really good. But the decisions [to not appoint English coaches], I don’t know the reasons why.”