London (AFP)
Pep Guardiola has extended his contract with Manchester City for two seasons, the club he is now linked with until 2023 announced on Thursday.
Arrived at the club in 2016, the former Barcelona (49), whose contract ended next summer, won two league titles, an FA Cup, three League Cups, but never the League of Champions, a major objective of the Citizens.
"In total, the team have won 181 of the 245 matches played under their command - a success rate of 73.87%," the club said, emphasizing that it "transformed the game" of the team, with a general philosophy very inspired by Barça where he played for nine years and which he coached for four years.
He then worked at Bayern Munich for three seasons, and Manchester City is the club where he will have been on the bench the longest.
"Since arriving at Manchester City, I have felt so welcome within the club and the city itself (...) to have this kind of support is the best thing a coach can dream of," said said the coach, quoted in the press release.
Guardiola had repeatedly expressed his wish to continue the adventure with City and the club had always made his extension their top priority.
"The challenge for us will be to continue to improve and evolve, and I am very motivated to help Manchester City in this," added Guardiola.
"The extension of Pep's contract is the natural continuation of the road traveled. It is the result of mutual trust and respect between him and the whole club", commented, for his part, President Khaldoon Mubarak.
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