Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has agreed a one-year contract extension.
Although City are refusing to comment on a story that was first reported in The Athletic, multiple sources have confirmed Guardiola has elected to sign a new deal to take his stay at the club to 10 years.
The 53-year-old Spaniard joined City in 2016 and has won 18 trophies so far, including six Premier League titles.
His contract had been due to expire at the end of the current season. There have been suggestions the new agreement will have the option of a second year, although this is not known at this stage.
During his time in Manchester, Guardiola has helped City become just the second English men’s team to win the Treble – the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the same season.
They have also become the first men’s team to win four successive English top-flight titles and to achieve 100 Premier League points in a single campaign.
City sit second in this season’s Premier League, five points behind leaders Liverpool, and are on a run of four successive defeats across all competitions.
This is the first time Guardiola has endured such a streak of losses – excluding shootouts – in his managerial career.
After the most recent – a 2-1 defeat at Brighton – he said: “Maybe after seven years winning six Premier Leagues, maybe one year another team deserve it.”
Guardiola has signed extensions in May 2018, November 2020 and November 2022.
Speaking in May after City’s historic fourth successive league title, Guardiola said he was “closer to leaving than staying”.
Guardiola later said “part of me is leaving” when director of football Txiki Begiristain announced in October that he – a long-time ally – would be moving on from City at the end of the season.
Former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss Guardiola said he wanted to be “really convinced” that any extension of his own stay would be “the best for the club”.
The uncertainty over Guardiola’s future has been cited by some as a reason for the team’s poor form.
There is also no timescale for the outcome of the disciplinary case brought by the Premier League for the 115 charges against City, which the club deny but could bring a huge sanction if guilt is established. Guardiola has continually backed the club and said critics need to wait for the final decision in the case before rushing to condemn.
He is the longest-serving current manager in the Premier League, after Jurgen Klopp left Liverpool in the summer.
