Pep Guardiola has stated that he retains an 'incredible energy' for his role at Manchester City, even as the club prepares for the possibility of his departure next summer. The Spaniard, who has been at the helm for nearly a decade, is pursuing a seventh Premier League title. City are reportedly making contingency plans, with Enzo Maresca emerging as a leading candidate to replace Guardiola if he decides to leave when his contract has one year remaining.
Guardiola Focused on Title Race
Ahead of City's first visit to Hill Dickinson Stadium to face Everton on Monday, Guardiola emphasized his commitment to closing the six-point gap on league leaders Arsenal. The Gunners have played two more matches since City's last league outing, securing victories over Newcastle and Fulham.
Guardiola remarked, 'I wouldn't be 10 years, even with good titles, if I didn't have an incredible environment. Now I feel more, I don't know … happy, not happy, but I don't know … still have incredible energy, still I'm so good, coming here to work on my day off.'
He added, 'I love when Gundo [Ilkay Gündogan] came back from Barcelona and said, Man City is top, top. You know, when that happens, we are in a good way. That's why we are consistently in the Champions League for the last 12, 13, 14 years. That's why we are always fighting for the titles, because they are consistent around the tactics, the systems, the players, the managers. It's like a bubble that makes people feel good.'
Chasing Treble Less Stressful
Guardiola admitted that pursuing a treble this season feels less stressful than last year's battle to secure Champions League qualification. City are competing with Arsenal for the title and face Chelsea in the FA Cup final later this month, aiming to end the campaign with three trophies.
'The hours before the game, I feel it [pressure] but the process between games I am more calm. Last season was 24 hours thinking what will happen at the club if we will not qualify for the Champions League? I felt it a lot,' Guardiola said. 'This season we won the Carabao Cup, [reached the] FA Cup final again and still fighting against Arsenal, so what can I say? It is really good. I would have loved to go through in the Champions League but the level is higher and it will be good learnings for me for the next season.'
Moyes Criticises Dibling's Application
In other Everton news, manager David Moyes has expressed disappointment with Tyler Dibling's performance since his £35 million move from Southampton last summer. The England Under-21 international has started only four Premier League games and has been largely absent from the squad since January.
'It's where he is,' Moyes said of Dibling's limited playing time. 'He'll have to do better. He'll have to do better in his work and in his training. We brought in Tyrique who is of a similar age and as competition to make sure we were covered.'
Moyes added, 'I think Tyrique has done well in the moments he's had in games and shown some bits that we like, so we want Tyler to step up, we really do. He's important to us. He's a player who we put a lot of faith and money into to bring here so we are looking for a lot more. We are not panicking with it because of his age. We want him to step up, we are hoping that he'll improve and next year will be a big year for him to see if he can do that.'
Everton are also in talks over a new contract for Harrison Armstrong, who has played more regularly than Dibling since returning from a successful loan spell at Preston. The homegrown midfielder's current deal runs until 2028, but the club plans to reward his development with an improved contract.
