Soccer:Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola will leave at the end of this season after deciding not to extend his contract according to reports in Spain this morning.Guardiola informed club president Sandro Rosell of his decision yesterday and was due to tell his players at training today.
Barca will then issue a statement announcing the coach's decision. Training was due to start at 10am Irish time at the club's facilities on the outskirts of the Catalan capital.
Speculation about Guardiola's future heightened after Barcelona were knocked out of the Champions League by Chelsea 3-2 on aggregate in their semi-final on Tuesday. That followed a 2-1 home loss to arch rivals Real Madrid on Saturday meaning they are likely to miss out on a fourth successive La Liga title.
The 41-year-old former Barca and Spain midfielder has enjoyed a hugely successful stint with the Catalan club winning 13 trophies in four seasons, whilst playing a passing style of football that has been widely acclaimed as the best in the world.
Guardiola stepped up from Barca B manager to first-team boss in 2008 and has gone on to become the most successful coach in the club’s illustrious history. He has led the azulgrana to two Champions League crowns, three La Liga trophies, one Copa del Rey, three Supercopas, two Uefa Super Cups and two Fifa Club World Cups.
But the setback against Chelsea came just 72 hours after Barca’s hopes of retaining their Primera Division crown were dashed following a 2-1 defeat at home to arch rivals Real Madrid. That loss left them seven points behind Jose Mourinho’s men with four games remaining and also ended their domestic dominance.
Guardiola led Barca to the Primera Division title in his first season in charge after masterminding a squad overhaul which saw the likes of Ronaldinho and Deco shipped out and a greater emphasis placed on youth. The results were immediate.
Not only did Barca win the league — the highlight being a 6-2 thrashing of Madrid at the Bernabeu — but they also claimed the Copa del Rey and Champions League crowns. The 2009/10 campaign kicked off with further success in the Spanish Super Cup, UEfa Super Cup and World Club Cup as Barca became the first club side to claim six major trophies in one calendar year.
They failed to defend their Champions League crown after being eliminated by Mourinho-led Inter Milan at the semi-final stage but retained their La Liga title with a record points total of 99. With Madrid hiring Mourinho in a bid to end Barca’s run of success, the 2010/11 season was supposed to pose new challenges for Guardiola.
But the former Spain midfielder, having signed David Villa to replace the ineffectual Zlatan Ibrahimovic, guided Barca to the league title once more and they backed that up by claiming the Champions League crown once more by defeating Manchester United at Wembley.
Cesc Fabregas joined from Arsenal in the summer of 2011 as Guardiola again placed his faith in products of the famed La Masia academy and while the free-flowing football remained, long winning runs were punctuated with surprise defeats.
The Spanish Super Cup and Super Cup were claimed, as was the Club World Cup, but La Liga setbacks against the likes of Getafe and Osasuna undermined their title challenge. Barca have qualified for the final of the Copa del Rey next month in which they will meet Athletic Bilbao in what is set to be Guardiola’s final game in charge.
Speculation has already started as to who will replace Guardiola with Ernesto Valverde, Marcelo Bielsa and Laurent Blanc all thought to be in the frame. As for Guardiola, he is expected to take a sabbatical from the game despite being linked with numerous jobs across Europe.
