Manuel Pellegrini will be in-demand this summer

Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini will be in-demand this summer

Manuel Pellegrini’s Manchester City are essentially still in contention for four trophies, yet he is set to be replaced at the Etihad Stadium this summer.

No doubt the chance to appoint the great Pep Guardiola as their boss was too good for City to turn down, so Pellegrini was rather a victim of timing, rather than his lack of managerial ability.

Pellegrini has done a decent job at City and his performance will certainly have only improved his future job prospects.

Reports from the Daily Express yesterday had the veteran linked with a move to Italian giants Juventus, if Massimiliano Allegri decides to move to Stamford Bridge in the summer.

A destabilising to the City squad

Manchester City may finish the season with a glorious four trophies, but then again they could finish empty-handed after the world found out that Pellegrini would be leaving this summer. The decision was not surprise, but the timing of the announcement was strange.

The decision for Pellegrini to announce his exit may just have had a destabilising effect on the City players and no doubt did not help their frame of mind going into the recent 3-1 defeat against title rivals Leicester City.

No matter what anybody says when a boss says he is going to leave, people decide to slack off or can often underperform, as they know that the particular boss will not be there in a couple of months’ time. It may not be a conscious decision, but it just seems like human nature.

That cannot be completely blamed for City’s defeat against Leicester, because City have been inconsistent all season and the Foxes were the better team, but it strikes me it could have been announced at a better time for everybody involved.

Still a very competent boss

Manuel Pellegrini has always been a very competent boss. From his days of turning Villarreal in a major force to his time more recently at City, he has done a good job wherever he has gone.

However, he is not quite in the top echelons of football bosses for some reason. He is not a Mourinho, Guardiola or Ancelotti. He is in the bracket below, just short of being a world-class boss and that is why City have hired Guardiola.

If Guardiola had not been available I am sure that City would have left the Chilean in charge and attempted to continue the team’s development. Pellegrini will do a decent job wherever he goes.

He seems like an ideal choice for Juventus. He would be a very stable replacement for Allegri, who has done a sterling job with the Bianconeri.

One thing that clubs will have taken from Pellegrini’s career as a whole is the way in which he has handled himself. He always comes across in a pretty dignified manner and not a boss who causes controversy.

He just gets on with his job quietly and is more often than not successful wherever he goes. The way in which he announced his intended departure was indicative of the man. Instead of starting his press conference with that fact, he almost matter of fact stated his intended exit at the end of the conference.

The announcement may have caught City off guard, but Pellegrini deserved to announce the decision at his convenience, considering he had known that he would leave for a good while.

Silverware before the end of the season

For now Manuel Pellegrini will be attempting to focus his attention on the Citizens challenge for the quadruple this season. City’s title challenge took a heavy blow in the home defeat against Leicester and they are now odds of 10/3 to be crowned champions in May.

The fact that City are still in four competitions is not all about the amount of money they have spent in recent years, but also how Pellegrini has rotated and managed his squad. The money has helped City have better options in most positions, but money does not always guarantee you success.

Not every Pellegrini buy has been a roaring success, but he has helped City step-up a level by making it into the knockout stages of the Champions League, which they had struggled to do previously, despite spending heavily.

Whatever happens for the rest of the campaign, Manuel Pellegrini will be a man in-demand this summer. Whether that is at Juventus or at other Premier League club, Pellegrini will no doubt have a job next season.

Where will Manuel Pellegrini be managing next season?