Why Manchester City can not afford to lose Pep Guardiola at this time amid Premier League battle

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Manchester City and Pep Guardiola will have to find a compromise as he runs his contract into the last few months.

One of the most iconic press conferences was the week when Pep Guardiola put up one of the best defences Manchester City will ever have. He warned that he wasn't going anywhere and was happy to go to the lower divisions with Manchester City.

He told a room packed with journalists that day: “We will go to the low division, no problem. We have been there before. We will call back Paul Dickov, and Mike Summerbee, and make a good process. We will be back, I'm sure."

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Summerbee, who made more than 350 appearances for the club between 1965 and 1975, is now 80 years old, while Dickov played 200 times over two spells for City and helped them get promoted from the second division to the Premier League.

City finds themselves battling in the Premier League while Pep Guardiola is considering what to do after nine years in Manchester. When he first arrived, not many tipped him to last more than three years—yet here we are, nine years later, and in that time he’s won it all, including the Champions League, multiple Premier League titles, League Cups, and much more.

If there is one thing City fans want to see, it’s him staying so they can clear their names as the more than 115 charges from the Premier League continue.

The way he defends the club is one thing that would be missing if he were to walk away amid all the chaos the club is currently engulfed in. It’s tough finding a manager who can play the kind of football he plays, and even tougher to get anyone to bring out the best in players and keep them winning year after year.

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But it’s almost impossible to find a manager who understands the dynamics and can say the right words and act in the way Pep does at this moment.

Most of the charges began before his time, but he has taken them on and battled through, insisting that the world should give the club a chance to defend itself.

Ten years is a long time to stay at a club, and Pep has had to build teams and navigate very complex circumstances. They will need him to at least commit for another year. Reports say he will sign for another two years, which would take him to 11 years at the Etihad. Not many people stay in a job that long, especially in a high-pressure role where media duties are as intense as training sessions.

However, there are some changes that mean more than football; they define legacy and character. Pep comes across as a man of his word, and one of the reasons he’s so respected is that people know he keeps his promises. Manchester City has stood by him even when he had doubts about himself in that first season when he first landed in England. Now is the time for him to back them as they navigate what is likely to change the Premier League’s regulations.

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