Former Manchester City striker Paul Dickov believes Pep Guardiola ‘still has one year left in him’ at the Etihad Stadium as Sunday’s blockbuster Carabao Cup final match with Arsenal looms.
Guardiola has been at the club ever since 2016, helping them the country’s most-dominant force during that time.
However, over the past two seasons, City have started to look considerably less like their usual selves.
They failed to win a trophy last term for just the second time under Guardiola and, this season, their hopes of Champions League glory are over following a chastening 5-1 aggregate defeat to Real Madrid.
They’re also nine points behind Arsenal at the Premier League summit, too, though will be hoping to beat the Gunners to claim the first piece of silverware of the campaign at Wembley on Sunday.
With Guardiola’s men inconsistent, his long-term future at the club is up in the air.
The former Bayern Munich and Barcelona coach will spend the international break pondering what to do next, amid some concerns within the club that he could be poised to announce his departure.
Paul Dickov became a hero at Man City during his playing days
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Some have even suggested that Guardiola is no longer the manager he once was.
Yet Dickov, speaking exclusively to GB News via Gambling.com where you can compare online casino sites, thinks the Spaniard should stay put.
“No, I actually think Pep has at least one more year left in him,” he said when asked if Guardiola’s stint was drawing to a close.
Pep Guardiola’s long-term future at Man City is currently up in the air
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GETTY“I can definitely see him taking the team next year as you look at the team he is building, which is full of young and hungry players such as [Antoine] Semenyo, [Rayan] Cherki, [Tijjani] Reijnders and [Abdukodir] Khusanov, plus adding to that [Marc] Guehi and especially [Omar] Marmoush, I believe Pep thinks this team can learn from this season and grow to next season and compete for the title.
“Pep still looks hungry and I believe has more to offer with this new group of players he has brought into the team.”
When quizzed on who could replace Guardiola if he was to leave, Dickov was even more emphatic in his response.
“It’s too early at this stage for me. I think Pep still has at least another season in him, so no one is in consideration at the minute,” he stated.
“He has bought well and although may fall short in the Premier League, he can still leave a marker by domestic cup wins and then the new young players can push on next year.
“Remember [Erling] Haaland is still vey young, so he is going nowhere and can score plenty more goals to push City on under Pep.”
Erling Haaland has found himself desperately out of form at the worst time for Man City
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REUTERSErling Haaland is City’s top scorer with 30 goals from 42 matches across all competitions.
However, the Norway international’s form has dipped ahead of the Arsenal game – having bagged just once in his last five matches.
Dickov puts this down to a lack of creativity within City’s ranks. The 53-year-old said: “City aren’t creating as many chances for Haaland as they had done in the past.
“This is evident to see. So when he only gets limited touches, this makes it look worse than it is.
“Present Haaland with chances and he will score. He doesn’t need many opportunities as we’ve seen over the years.”
Who comes out on top on Sunday remains to be seen.