Pep Guardiola has firmly stated that he has no intention of leaving Manchester City despite the club’s ongoing struggles, as he works to address their alarming decline.
Although Guardiola recently signed a two-year contract extension, City’s poor form has sparked speculation about his future at the Etihad.
A dismal stretch of nine defeats in 13 matches, with only one victory in that period, has led to suggestions that the manager could walk away if he is unable to resolve his team’s issues.
However, after leading City to six Premier League titles in the last seven seasons, Guardiola remains determined and confident that he can reverse the current slump.
“I will try, I will keep going. Sometimes you think the bad run will be ended earlier or it would be easier to fix it, but it takes more time,” he said.
“I will not give up. I want to be here. I want to do it and, with the situation that we have, we have to do it.
“Of course I want it, everyone wants it. I don’t want to disappoint my people in terms of the club, the fans, the people who love this club.
“I think all of us in our job want to do it well and please the people. That is undeniable, not a question mark.
“The biggest test is to come back again, but we have done that before.”
Injuries have played a significant role in City’s struggles, leaving them in seventh place in the Premier League.
Ballon d’Or winner Rodri is still recovering from a long-term knee injury, while Ruben Dias, John Stones, Ederson, Kyle Walker, Jack Grealish, and Matheus Nunes were all absent for the 1-1 draw against Everton on Boxing Day.
Erling Haaland, typically a prolific scorer, missed a penalty that could have secured a win for City, further highlighting his inconsistent form this season.
Haaland has scored only once in his last seven matches, but Guardiola refrained from placing blame on the Norwegian striker or any of his teammates.
“I don’t have it in my education to start complaining, to point at people. It’s happened, it’s life, it’s football, so let’s try it again,” he said.
“That’s why we have had success, because always it is never enough, we will try it again and again and again. That’s why we won a lot of titles.
“Every three days it was a game and win, win, win for many, many months and years. Now we have to do the same when results are not good.”
City still have concerns about the fitness of several players as they aim to return to winning form against struggling Leicester on Sunday.
“Sometimes you have injuries,” Guardiola said. “For how many years we were incredibly consistent but now, yes, we’re a little bit down and the main reason is having so many important players injured.
“But I saw the team spirit, how we trained this week, how focused they are, how they try to practise.”
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