Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini does not believe that the impending arrival of Pep Guardiola to succeed him will overshadow the club’s four-pronged quest for silverware this season.
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini does not believe that the impending arrival of Pep Guardiola to succeed him will overshadow the club’s four-pronged quest for silverware this season.
Tuesday’s 2-1 win at Sunderland gave Pellegrini a 65th Premier League victory in 100 games, a ratio bettered only by former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, who won 73 of his first 100 English top-flight matches.
The Chilean’s record eclipses that of Alex Ferguson over his first 100 games in the English top tier and is better than both predecessor Roberto Mancini and Liverpool’s Rafael Benitez.
But it will not prevent him being replaced at the end of the season by Guardiola, and that announcement made Monday dominated his post-match press conference after a win that kept City three points behind EPL leaders Leicester City.
Refuting the suggestion that Guardiola’s appointment might be a distraction for City, who remain in contention for league, Champions League, League Cup and FA Cup honours, he said: “The announcement was not on my mind — only having a good season ahead of the next game against Leicester.
“I want to do well in all competitions and all I was focused on was getting the three points. We are all thinking about this season rather than the next. If we can finish the season very strongly, then it will be special.”
