Report: Guardiola staying at Man City for at least 1 more season

Pep Guardiola has agreed to a one-year contract extension with Manchester City, The Athletic's Sam Lee reports, ensuring he'll stay at the club beyond the end of the season.

Guardiola's pre-existing deal was set to expire in June.

The new agreement reportedly includes a one-year option that, if triggered, would extend his stay to the end of the 2026-27 season.

The news appears to be a vote of confidence in a regime that's set to move on from longtime director of football Txiki Begiristain, the architect behind City's rise and the man who brought Guardiola to the Premier League in 2016. It also comes at a delicate time for the reigning Premier League champions, who've lost four consecutive games for the first time under the 53-year-old and are awaiting the results of a hearing into 115 charges of alleged financial wrongdoing over a nine-year period.

City have vehemently denied the charges.

There were doubts Guardiola would commit to the club with so much hanging in the balance. The coach admitted last month that a "part" of him was leaving with Begiristain, who first trusted Guardiola to coach Barcelona in 2008.

"But I have the opinion the club is so solid, incredibly well-structured. It has to be like that. All families have to move on, and the club will move on," Guardiola said.

Sporting CP sporting director Hugo Viana will replace Begiristain next term.

City are chasing an unprecedented fifth straight Premier League title - and their seventh in eight seasons - but currently trail first-placed Liverpool by five points.