Cliff Notes – Man City boss Pep Guardiola: We don’t deserve bonuses this season
- Pep Guardiola stated that Manchester City players and staff "don’t deserve" summer bonuses due to their underwhelming performance this season, currently sitting fifth in the Premier League.
- Despite the potential for silverware in the FA Cup and FIFA Club World Cup, Guardiola emphasised that these achievements would not warrant bonuses for the team or staff.
- The manager also mentioned the ongoing uncertainty regarding the Premier League’s case against the club, indicating that a verdict may take another month to be announced.
Man City boss Pep Guardiola: We don’t deserve bonuses this season
Manchester City players and staff “don’t deserve” summer bonuses after their disappointing campaign, according to manager Pep Guardiola.
City are fifth in the Premier League table with nine games to go while also failing to reach the round of 16 of the Champions League.
They could still end the season with silverware in the FA Cup and FIFA Club World Cup — which comes with a £97 million ($125m) winners’ cheque.
However, Guardiola insists it won’t be enough for anyone at the club to deserve a bonus.
“We don’t deserve it this season,” Guardiola told a news conference on Friday. “We don’t deserve a bonus this season. The bonus, if you win, I don’t know how much. You go there, it’s for the club. The managers, the backroom staff, the players we don’t deserve. Not even a watch.”
Pep Guardiola has won the Premier League with Manchester City six times. Martin Rickett/PA Images via Getty Images
City return from the international break with an FA Cup quarterfinal against Bournemouth on Sunday.
There was speculation that the break for international matches could provide a window for a verdict to be delivered in the Premier League’s case against the club.
It’s now set to drag on and Guardiola raised the possibility that it could be another month before a decision is made public.
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“We are more than one year with that so nothing changes with one more week or two more weeks or three more weeks or four more weeks,” he said.
Guardiola’s priority this week is to reach a seventh consecutive FA Cup semifinal before turning his attention to Leicester City’s visit to the Etihad Stadium in the Premier League on Wednesday.
With their involvement in the Club World Cup in the U.S., City’s season could run into July and Guardiola has again raised the possibility that Rodri, who has been sidelined since September with a knee injury, could feature.
“I hope,” Guardiola said. “Listen, it would be nice if he could play tomorrow, but don’t do a wrong decision right now, you know and make a step back. He’s behaving really well on the pitch already, but competition is completely different. We will see.”