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The information recently made available to the public through Football Leaks has already revealed Bayern Munich’s behind-the-scenes plotting to forge a European Super League. Now the data has disclosed another scheme behind Bayern’s back — this time starring Premier League bad boy Manchester City and Bayern’s former head coach Pep Guardiola.
Der Spiegel obtained a copy of Pep Guardiola’s contract with Manchester City (Spiegel). The salient point: it is dated October 20, 2015, just two months into the 2015/2016 season, and a full two months before Guardiola finally informed Bayern that he would not renew or extend his contract with the Rekordmeister.
The question of whether Bayern’s management could convince Guardiola to extend his stay in Munich was one of the major news themes of this blog at the time. We naively asked on November 7, 2015, “Are Pep Guardiola’s contract extension talks about to turn into a giant mess?” In a sense, the answer was no: Guardiola had signed with City over two weeks earlier.
#Rummenigge on #Pep's future: "We will have that conversation during the winter break."
— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) November 7, 2015
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In October, Bayern had hoped to hammer out an extension by the November business meeting. In November, the goalposts had moved to the winter break in December. It seems that Karl-Heinz Rummenigge himself was left utterly in the dark. The players likewise expressed their hope that Pep would stay.
The delay dragged on until mid-December, when the press at last received word that Guardiola had informed Rummenigge he would depart. That news broke on December 16. In the meantime, the club swiftly reached an agreement with Carlo Ancelotti to replace Guardiola. Bayern officially announced Pep’s departure and Carlo’s appointment on December 20, 2015.
Multiple reports soon appeared to the effect that Guardiola would join Manchester City on a massive three-year contract, but City’s official announcement was kept under wraps for yet another two months. Guardiola was richly rewarded indeed, receiving 13.5 million pounds in his first year and 16.75 million in the next.
Bayern and Guardiola remain on friendly terms — with the exception of his arch-enemy, team doctor Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt. Thought the club bosses may think twice about Guardiola’s character, there is nothing to be done now. Suffice it to say Guardiola is no Jupp Heynckes, who sealed his contract with a handshake and stood by his declared intention to retire throughout his tenure.