Pep Guardiola will return to the Etihad Stadium for the first time since Manchester City were found guilty of 114 of 115 charges related to financial rule breaches. The former Citizens boss left the Premier League in the summer, citing the need for "new energy" at the club.
Shortly after his departure, the league announced that an independent commission had found the club guilty of all but one of its 115 charges. Between 2009 and 2018, the panel ruled that City relied on "sham contracts" to inflate sponsorship revenue by over £830million and failed to co-operate with the investigation.
Guardiola will now attend City's Champions League clash against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday night as a spectator, according to BBC Sport. It is unclear whether he will be paraded by the club or maintain a low profile in the stands.
Guardiola's Net Worth and Earnings
Guardiola is estimated to have a fortune of over £120m ($160m). Gazzetta reports that he started on an annual salary of around £16m (€19m) at City before earning a jump to £21m (€25m) in 2024.
He earned a total of £43m in three seasons at Bayern and £37m for his four years in Spain with Barcelona. The bulk of his wealth was made at City, where he reportedly earned over £200m in wages alone.
This number does not include the bonuses Guardiola would have received for winning multiple Premier Leagues, domestic honours, and the Champions League in the 2022/23 season. The 55-year-old also built wealth from his playing days as a defensive midfielder, where he spent the bulk of his career at Barcelona. He also had stints at Brescia, Roma, Al-Ahli, and Dorados, making 480 appearances from 1990 until 2006.
Guardiola's Support for City Amid Charges
Guardiola has been firm in his support for City over the years, insisting on innocence from the minute the investigation began in 2023. When the verdict came through, he returned to social media to show support to the club hierarchy, players, new manager Enzo Maresca, and the supporters.
Sharing a picture of himself alongside chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Guardiola wrote: "I want every single Manchester City fan across the world to know I am here; more than ever. I am, always have been, always will, be behind my club, my owner, my chairman, Ferran, the players, staff, Enzo and you, our unique supporters. Let me be clear: we will get through this together. I love you all."
Painful Divorce from Wife
Fans were in the dark about Guardiola's breakup with his 30-year partner and 10-year wife, Cristina Serra, as divorce proceedings began in late 2024. However, Amazon Prime's docuseries about the club, A Beautiful Obsession, revealed just how much the head coach had been struggling.
Before the players were even aware of the sad news, longtime colleague Manel Estiarte admitted he had to handle those concerned about Guardiola's sudden change in behaviour. He said: "They were worried because Pep was anxious. He was sad. He was different. And only I knew the reason.
"And I said to the team, 'Please, you have to understand, you're not playing with a coach who can be a bit impulsive, who can be a bit intense, who can be sometimes up and down. You're seeing a human being. He's getting a divorce.'"
Guardiola revealed the news following a Champions League loss to Juventus in December 2024. "Guys, I want to confess something," he announced to his dressing room. "I'm divorced from the most beautiful woman on your planet, my wife, my ex-wife. I love her unbelievably, but we lost the passion. For many reasons, we lost the passion.
I love her? Yeah, absolutely. She loves me? Yeah. But we lost the passion. How [do] you play football? Because you play over something inside. Where is the passion? In your life, whatever you're going to do, do it with passion. I don't want a good player; I want players with passion."
He berated the players with this information after another European loss in November, stating: "I work for you, and I leave my life, my divorce, and my family away and everything for all of you. And what do you give back? The performance you have done, all of you. It's a disgrace, guys. When I see that, I am exhausted, I'm drained, I want to quit. When you play like this, I feel alone."
