Khaldoon Al Mubarak reveals Guardiola quit Man City '100 times' as Maresca appointment nears

Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has revealed that Pep Guardiola threatened to resign approximately 100 times during his decade at the Etihad Stadium, describing his role as the manager’s unofficial “psychiatrist” through the club’s most difficult periods. Al Mubarak made the disclosure ahead of the expected appointment of former City assistant and Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca as Guardiola’s successor, saying an announcement would come “very soon.”

Speaking to club media, Al Mubarak drew on the fable of the boy who cried wolf to explain how he learned to distinguish Guardiola’s genuine resignation moments from the routine ones. “In the case of Pep, when he says I quit, it doesn’t mean he’s quitting,” he said. “You don’t take it that seriously — you have to manage him.”

The chairman described a long-running dynamic in which Guardiola repeatedly questioned how much longer he could continue, even from as early as his fourth and fifth seasons in charge. “I always had a very clear understanding with Pep,” Al Mubarak said. “Whenever he quits or whenever he thinks it’s time, I will always convince him to come back, until the time where I know it’s actually the real time — where it’s actually the real moment Pep decides it’s time.”

Guardiola ultimately confirmed his departure before City’s final Premier League fixture of the season against Aston Villa, ending a trophy-laden tenure that brought six league titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups, and the club’s first Champions League.

With Maresca poised to step into the role, Al Mubarak used the occasion to send a pointed message to the rest of the Premier League. “We’ve gone through a very thoughtful and structured process and the team is convinced — and I am convinced, rest assured — that we will bring in the right manager for this club,” he said, adding that City are nowhere near their peak as a club.