Pep to leave at the end of the season

[Jimmieblue]

Nothing official or unofficial from Pep or the club yet and the whole world as gone mad. Hard to believe newspapers can do this to upset a team in a title race. The club should sue the Daily Mail and any sponsor who has leaked anything.

Don’t think they are upset, bet they all knew.

 

[johnny crossan]

I’m confused by the supposed legal issues with Chelsea of us getting Maresca. What’s all that bollocks about?

Chelsea to launch legal complaint over Man City’s Enzo Maresca pursuit​

Stamford Bridge club unhappy with the effect Italian’s abrupt departure had on their season which could result in no European football

Chelsea are shaping up for a legal battle with Manchester City over their putative appointment of Enzo Maresca, who left Stamford Bridge in contested circumstances at the start of the year.
With Pep Guardiola expected to leave City after a decade in charge, the first choice to replace him is the Italian who departed Chelsea abruptly earlier this season. Although the terms of that split have never been commented on publicly by either side, the allegation that Maresca had told Chelsea’s ownership that he was in talks with City has not been disputed.
The expectation is that Chelsea will seek compensation from City, with the added threat of disclosure about the terms of Maresca’s departure from Stamford Bridge, and the events in the months leading up to it. Neither club have commented on the situation.
For any action to be brought against City it is understood that a complaint would have to be made by Chelsea to the Premier League, which would then be obliged to investigate under the terms of its own rules.
It is expected that the legal case Chelsea have in that regard will unfold when, as expected, Maresca is appointed by City. That announcement may take some time given the significance of Guardiola’s departure. Maresca, 46, has said nothing in public since his Chelsea departure at a time when the club were fifth. Although Chelsea have not confirmed, it is understood that there was no major compensation pay-out to the Italian.
Chelsea had started to fall away this season in the final weeks leading up to Maresca’s sacking on Jan 2. The team were on a run of just one win in seven Premier League games with suggestions from inside the club that all was not well. By the end, his position was considered untenable by the club.

Maresca’s record at Chelsea​

It culminated in him skipping post-match media duties following a draw with Bournemouth. Before that run of poor results, Chelsea had been in second place in the Premier League and there remains considerable disquiet at the club that the Maresca departure undermined their season. The arrival of Liam Rosenior as Maresca’s successor did not work out as Chelsea would have wished and the club is currently on its fourth managerial appointment of the season.
City have been obliged to plan at different points over recent years when it looked like Guardiola might be wavering in his future. There have been times in the past when they have looked closely at lining up another assistant of his, Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal manager currently in pole position to win the Premier League this season.
Maresca is well-known to City Football Group, having been part of the City staff on two occasions – one year in charge of the club’s Under-23s in 2020-2021 and then as a first-team assistant to Guardiola in the 2022-2023 season.
He was appointed by Chelsea as the Championship-winning manager of Leicester City in the summer of 2024. He won the Uefa Conference League in his first season and then the Fifa Club World Cup, having studiously avoided any controversy. The relationship with Chelsea broke down in a relatively short space of time. After the win over Everton on Dec 13, Maresca said that he had experienced “the worst 48 hours” of his career – interpreted as a direct attack on Chelsea and its BlueCo ownership.
That was later understood to be around the issue of return to play for injured players. Nevertheless, it was interpreted on some sides as deliberately provocative.
Without a win in their last seven Premier League games, Chelsea play Tottenham Hotspur at home on Tuesday night currently out of the European places in tenth position. The club have appointed Xabi Alonso and his coaching team to take over in the summer. City play Bournemouth when only a win will keep the title race alive.

 

[Marvin.]

Reports that players new pep was leaving and if you listen to Silva and Guehi after the fa cup game reading between those lines they new!?

See the Guardian. They are saying the exact opposite:
https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=theguardian.com
Pep Guardiola has informed Manchester City’s players that he will leave the club after Sunday’s final Premier League game of the season against Aston Villa.

The manager felt obliged to update his squad after news of his departure broke on Monday night, taking him by surprise while he was preparing for Tuesday’s match at Bournemouth

 

[Citizen of Legoland]

View attachment 192504

Chelsea to launch legal complaint over Man City’s Enzo Maresca pursuit​

Stamford Bridge club unhappy with the effect Italian’s abrupt departure had on their season which could result in no European football

That’s all well and good but what do Right Said Fred have to do with it?

 

[BringBackSwales]

Just arrived at hotel in Bournemouth, just be aware if you are coming down later that I got a 25 min delay at the end of the a34 where it joins the m3 at the roundabout so I imagine it will be a lot worse later. Up the fucking Blues

Sorry I meant to put this in the Bournemouth match thread, could a mod move it?

 

[Didsbury Dave]

See the Guardian. They are saying the exact opposite:
https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=theguardian.com
Pep Guardiola has informed Manchester City’s players that he will leave the club after Sunday’s final Premier League game of the season against Aston Villa.

The manager felt obliged to update his squad after news of his departure broke on Monday night, taking him by surprise while he was preparing for Tuesday’s match at Bournemouth

If Ric from Bluemoon knew you can guarantee the players had a pretty good idea.

 

[brazilians hurt]

Reports that players new pep was leaving and if you listen to Silva and Guehi after the fa cup game reading between those lines they new!?

Naive to think otherwise, the press are just trying to make a thing of it. For me Phil’s comments after the cup final were pretty telling with the “I hope he decides to stay” line

 

[footballmanager]

so he is leaving us to do nothing at all according to the media

he got divorced last year, probably needs some time off to go on dates and stuff

 

[cleavers]

Sorry I meant to put this in the Bournemouth match thread, could a mod move it?

Done.

 

[JewelZee]

Agreed. Zero respect, did it purely for his own journalistic benefit, not a care given for Pep nor the club. Probably received a brown envelope from the Arsenal board to do it with a week of the title race left with a match the next day.

Arsenal would run the risk of it blowing up in their faces. I was much more concerned about this Bournemouth match before the news of Pep's leaving broke. I fully expect our boys to go balls to the wall for their gaffer and run through the Cherries. Anything short of an all out siege mentality would be extremely disappointing. If ever there's been a boss who has earned a "win it for the skipper" sendoff its Pep!

 

[Gray]

If he is going it is all a bit sneaky, when are they going to tell us?

 

[waspish]

See the Guardian. They are saying the exact opposite:
https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=theguardian.com
Pep Guardiola has informed Manchester City’s players that he will leave the club after Sunday’s final Premier League game of the season against Aston Villa.

The manager felt obliged to update his squad after news of his departure broke on Monday night, taking him by surprise while he was preparing for Tuesday’s match at Bournemouth

If you believe that with the amount of rumours doing the rounds for the last 3 months it’s pretty naive! None of those players said yeah he told us he was staying!

 

[johnny crossan]

If he is going it is all a bit sneaky, when are they going to tell us?

you can post a Titantic gif when they do :-)

 

[Coatigan]

Judging from the comments of Bernardo, Guehi and then Foden, it is clear they spoke about it before.

 

[johnny crossan]

That’s all well and good but what do Right Said Fred have to do with it?

Chavs had to pay compo to Leicester for Enzo tbf

 

[We've got Guardiola]

Unfortunately I think we'll get beat or draw tonight and then this weekend is going to be awful.

Season over for me and more so the end of the best ever era.

 

[Gray]

Unfortunately I think we'll get beat or draw tonight and then this weekend is going to be awful.

Season over for me and more so the end of the best ever era.

Well if it is we have two trophies in the bag, what other PL team can say that?

 

[Brunswick Blue]

Forgive me for being downbeat but as a supporter since the late 50s I know only too well what can happen when a iconic manager leaves and it's not good.

 

[Colin Bells Boots]

Unfortunately I think we'll get beat or draw tonight and then this weekend is going to be awful.

Season over for me and more so the end of the best ever era.

That's the spirit, what an inspirational post .

 

[We've got Guardiola]

Well if it is we have two trophies in the bag, what other PL team can say that?

Sorry by awful I just mean based upon what could have been, the guy deserved one more title before he goes.

I mean bloody hell it's crazy that we could judge this season as one of relative disappointment because we only did the double, that's the levels of Pep.