Guardiola: Man City job will be incomplete without Champions League triumph

Pep Guardiola insisted a desire to win the Champions League was not his only motivation for signing a new Manchester City contract, but he accepts the job would feel incomplete without a European triumph.

Guardiola secured an extension at City last month, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2024-25 season.

City have enjoyed vast domestic success under the former Bayern Munich and Barcelona coach, winning the Premier League four times out of the past five seasons.

However, a Champions League win has eluded them. They lost to Chelsea in the 2021 final and succumbed to Real Madrid in last season’s semi-finals.

Guardiola knows it will be a blemish on his record if City cannot end their bad luck in the competition before he leaves.

“I admit it’s the trophy that we want and of course it would not be complete – my period here – if we don’t win it,” Guardiola told reporters ahead of City’s EFL Cup clash with Liverpool.

“But it’s not the only reason I extended the contract, absolutely not. What does it mean if for the last 11 months we didn’t play in the Champions League?

“Of course, I will do everything in this time we are together, we are going to try, as we tried before. Of course it’s the trophy we don’t have and we will try to do it.”

Back at it! pic.twitter.com/kNOA02kori

— Manchester City (@ManCity) December 20, 2022

City’s trophy count under Guardiola stands at 11, but the 51-year-old is immensely grateful for the faith shown in him by the club’s leadership.

“I said many times what I had here. Thank you so much for the confidence they have in me,” he said. “It would be difficult to repay what in these many years, the board, all the people have shown me.

“It’s difficult for me to reject them because of how they still want me and my staff, to try and do our best.

“I don’t have enough words to express the incredible gratitude for this club.”

After taking on Liverpool on Thursday, City restart their Premier League campaign against Leeds United on December 28.