Pep Guardiola has told Manchester City he remains happy to extend his contract, but exercised caution over the prospect of signing a new deal before the time is right.
Guardiola is out of contract at City at the end of the season, prompting some concern from fans that this could be his last campaign in charge of the Blues. However, Guardiola has repeatedly said he will only sign a new deal if it is right for the club and for himself — even if he would be more than happy to extend his six-year reign beyond the summer.
Speaking on the eve of his seventh season in charge at City, Guardiola addressed his future again, saying he has spoken to the club about the issue, and neither party will rush the decision.
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"I wouldn’t change my life here one second. It’s seven seasons already. We spoke with the club," he said.
"Middle of the season, end of the season, we will talk again about how we feel and decide what’s best for the club. I said many times if they want it I’d like to stay longer but at the same time I have to be sure.
"It’s not the second or third season, it’s many years already and I have to see how the players behave. I don’t want to be a problem, sometimes when you extend things and you force it it’s not good so we you have to go through it and relax.
"This kind of situation happens when it’s going to happen in a natural way. If you force it it’s not going well. We will see what happens during the season and how we feel and the best decision for the club is going to be taken."
Guardiola met owner Sheikh Mansour this summer, along with chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, and spoke last season of his happiness to stay 'for 10 years' if he could. But with contract talks not the priority, Guardiola had a familiar word of warning to City ahead of the new season, with a new title challenge beginning at West Ham on Sunday.
"I have a feeling every time we start, that this season Is harder," he said.
"Everyone getting better, every owner has invested. Many teams do it and do it well, the quality is there, that’s why it’s so exciting and why the Premier League is the best.
"Never when we start the Premier League am I thinking about winning the Premier League now. We don’t need perspective to see what we’ve done is massive. To win four Premier Leagues in the six seasons we’ve been in this country we’re incredibly proud. I’d like to say loudly how well we’ve done it.
"I’m not saying we have to win the fifth, just travel to London tomorrow and do a good game at West Ham. Always we struggle a little bit at the start of the season and you drop points every season so try to avoid it. Every week we’ll feel better and we’ll see what happens.
"Be competitors, be consistent, I know exactly what we can do. We want to make the next step in the way we play and this is the desire to do it."
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