Manchester City will be a club in mourning once Pep Guardiola leaves town.
Some supporters cannot contemplate life without him bossing the blue half of Manchester. Some don’t even want to think about the prospect of Guardiola standing down – despite appearing to have 12 months to prepare for it happening.
And none of them would accept Guardiola bringing forward his long goodbye to this summer, instead of the next one. But is it so preposterous to argue that right now might just be the best time of all for the Spaniard to leave the Premier League champions?
READ MORE: Glamorous life of Pep Guardiola’s model daughter who once dated England star
READ MORE: Man Utd ‘face potential threat of relegation from Europa League’ despite FA Cup heroics
Join the Daily Star’s WhatsApp for the sexiest headlines, showbiz gossip and lots more
The Daily Star is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join us!
Through the app, we’ll send you the sassiest showbiz stories, some naught headline and a seismic smattering of aliens…along with the latest breaking news of course.
To join our community, all you have to do to join is click on this link, select ‘Join Chat’ and you’re in!
No one will be able to see who has sign up and no one can send messages except for the Daily Star team. We also treat our community members to competitions, special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners.
If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Looking back, his legacy is guaranteed. His job is done.
In eight seasons he’s masterminded unprecedented dominance, winning 15 major trophies which have included a record four league titles on the spin and a Treble. Barring a quadruple, it doesn’t get better than this.
But when it comes to looking forward, the future looks more uncertain than unprecedented. Guardiola has 12 months remaining on his contract – and these promise to be far from plain sailing.
Arsenal pushed City to the limit this season and are improving significantly year-on-year under Mikel Arteta. Liverpool could have fresh impetus under new boss Arne Slot. While Real Madrid, the club which conquers Europe for fun, unlike once in a Blue Moon like City, are about to sign Kylian Mbappe.
(Image: Michael Regan/Getty Images)
There could be some big names leaving the Etihad this summer, too. While there is also the small matter of a hearing into the 115 charges laid against City for alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules. This is expected to take place in the autumn – and irrespective of the outcome, will be the mother of all distractions.
Despite all of Guardiola’s success, a dark cloud still provides the backdrop to what he’s achieved. Oh, and City have just lost a Cup final to a bang average Manchester United team. Something which just isn’t supposed to happen to Guardiola.
Guardiola looked tired as he tried to fathom what had happened at Wembley. Which is understandable, considering the bloke lives on a diet of adrenaline and little sleep. So how much longer can he push the boundaries in a bid to remain on top?
(Image: Getty Images)
Jurgen Klopp made the right decision when he chose to leave Liverpool at the end of the season. He knew he’d achieved all he could during his time at Anfield. He also knew he needed a break, for the sake of his wellbeing.
Only an idiot would bet against Guardiola winning more trophies next season, to add more layers to his legend. But then again, we all love football because it’s so gloriously unpredictable. Guardiola himself was reminded of this in London last weekend, when United gave him a slap round the face.
Only Guardiola will know when the right time is to step aside. And it’s a decision only he will get to make, because when you’ve won as much as he has, you get to choose your own destiny.
But quitting while you’re ahead is never a bad place to start.
(Image: Offside via Getty Images)
Luke Littler should be SPOTY shoo-in
There’s more chance of Luke Littler missing a trademark treble than of him winning SPOTY come December.
That’s because darts players and one of the BBC’s flagship events go together like oil and water. No darts player has ever won the coveted award since its inception back in 1954. The closest we’ve come is when Phil Taylor was runner-up in 2010. And he had to have won the world championship 13 times for this to happen.
But while the sporting schedule of 2024 still has a lot of twists and turns to come, not least this summer, it will take something special to overtake what Littler has already achieved.
(Image: Getty Images)
He reached the world championship final at the age of just 16. Littler then followed this up by thrashing world champion Luke Humphries to win the Premier League Darts final. His rise to stardom isn’t just about how much he’s achieved at an age which means he’s not old enough to vote in the next election, or go to the pub for a pint. It’s also about the manner in which he’s achieved what he has, because he’s a born entertainer.
There’s a clue in the title of SPOTY. It’s the word ‘personality’ – and Littler has bucketloads of the stuff.