MANCHESTER CITY EXCLUSIVE: Pep Guardiola planning sabbatical after exhausting Etihad spell

MANCHESTER CITY boss Pep Guardiola is already plotting his next sabbatical from football.

Posted Wednesday, June 12, 2019 by Dailystar.co.uk

Guardiola has told people last season's 'Treble' campaign left him shattered and thinking about his next break from the pressures of managing a big club.

There is no suggestion Guardiola will quit the Premier League champions this summer.

He signed a contract extension in May, 2018 that keeps him in Manchester until 2021.

But sources close to the Spaniard believe he could decide to leave the Etihad at the end of next season if he manages to win the Champions League.

A source said: "Pep invests so much emotional energy into his work that it takes it's a big toll.

"He never stops, but it comes at a cost and leaves him needing a break. It's inevitable he will have to take a step back."

The news will stun the Premier League champions - and send a shiver down the spine of Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy.

Should Guardiola leave City, then Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino would be their No.1 target to replace him.

Guardiola has returned to Barcelona with his family to rest following one of the most incredible season's in English football history.

MANCHESTER CITY EXCLUSIVE: Pep Guardiola planning sabbatical after exhausting Etihad spell
Guardiola continues to expend huge amounts of energy in pursuit of perfection (Pic: GETTY)

City pipped Liverpool to the title by one point after winning their last 14 league games in what was a titanic tussle.

Guardiola's men also won the FA Cup and League Cup, but crashed out of the Champions League to eventual finalists Spurs following a controversial second leg at the Etihad.

Guardiola, who looked drained at the end of this season, has never spent more than four campaigns in charge of a club. Next season will be his fourth at the Etihad.

He famously stood down as Barcelona boss in 2012, having won 13 major trophies in four seasons, including two European Cups.

MANCHESTER CITY EXCLUSIVE: Pep Guardiola planning sabbatical after exhausting Etihad spell
City's battle with Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool is perhaps his toughest challenge to date (Pic: GETTY)

MANCHESTER CITY EXCLUSIVE: Pep Guardiola planning sabbatical after exhausting Etihad spell
Guardiola cited the pressures of the job as his reason for leaving Barcelona (Pic: GETTY)

Guardiola took a 12 month sabbatical and spent most of it in his luxurious penthouse in Manhattan, New York, before returning to take charge of Bayern Munich.

He cited pressure and mental fatigue as the reason for calling time on his tenure at the Nou Camp and said:

"The main reason I have taken this decision is because four years is many years. I have given everything, I have nothing left and need to recharge my batteries.

"The demands have been great and I have not been able to rest much. I have to recover and the only way I can do that is by distancing myself. Otherwise, we would have ended up damaging each other."