Enzo Maresca has reached an agreement in principle to replace Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, according to reports on Wednesday that set a timetable for a managerial handover if Guardiola departs.
The reported deal is described as a two-year contract with an option for a third year; one report on X carried a near-verbatim outline that the contract would run until 2028 with the option for 2029 and that City had designated Maresca as Guardiola’s replacement should Pep leave. Nicolo Schira wrote on X: "Excl. – Enzo #Maresca has an agreement in principle with #ManchesterCity for a contract until 2028 with the option for 2029. #MCFC have designeted former Chelsea’s manager as #Guardiola’s replacement if Pep leaves. It’s up to Guardiola decides what to do. Maresca is waiting."
The timing sharpens the stakes. Guardiola has one year left on his current Manchester City contract, and on Saturday he celebrated the club's 20th trophy after the FA Cup final — a night when Antoine Semenyo scored and Guardiola's team lifted another piece of silverware. That recent victory underlines why any succession plan at City would be consequential immediately: the club remains at the apex of English football even as questions about its managerial future circulate.
Context matters: Maresca is a known figure inside Guardiola's circle, having worked under Guardiola in 2022, and was sacked by Chelsea in January. He has said he is "ready" to return to management, telling Sky Sports he is "ready" to get back to work. The reports position him as a continuity candidate — someone familiar with the manager whose place he would take.
But friction remains between the reporting and the reality on the Etihad touchline. Guardiola himself refused to settle the speculation when pressed after the FA Cup final, steering clear of any definitive answer and ending a television interview with, "What rumours? Have a lovely evening." At the same appearance he added, "the future is bright," a line that both reassured supporters and avoided commitment. The reported agreement in principle, according to the X post, is explicitly conditional: "It’s up to Guardiola decides what to do. Maresca is waiting."
That conditionality is the story's hinge. An agreement in principle implies paperwork and a timeline are in place at one end; at the other is Guardiola's still-active contract and his public reluctance to outline plans beyond the coming year. If Guardiola chooses to stay, the reported deal for Maresca would not immediately take effect; if Guardiola departs, the structure for a handover appears to be ready-made.
For Maresca, who left Chelsea in January and has publicly declared his readiness, the reported arrangement would be a fast-track back to the highest level of the game. For the club, naming a successor who has worked with Guardiola offers continuity rather than a radical reset. For Guardiola, the choice — one year before his contract runs out — will determine whether Manchester City makes the switch now or waits until a later, more voluntary moment.
Unless Guardiola signals a clear decision, the next act will fall to him: confirm he will extend or announce his exit, and the reported agreement in principle will either be activated or remain a standing plan. For now, Maresca is positioned and publicly "ready," and City has, according to the reports, a contingency waiting for Pep's call.
