Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola admitted it would be tough for him to
find a better home than the Nou Camp after agreeing to stay in
charge of the Catalan giants for another 12 months.
Speculation had been mounting about Guardiola's future at
Barca with the 39-year-old's existing contract running out this
summer, but the announcement at a Nou Camp press conference should
bring an end to that - at least for the time being.
Guardiola's new deal will tie him to the Spanish, European
and world champions until the end of the 2010/11 season, although
the agreement will not be signed until after this summer's
presidential elections.
"Nowhere am I going to be better than I am here," said
Guardiola, who as a player and former captain with Barca
represented the club between 1990-2001 and won six league titles,
the European Cup and two Copa del Reys among a host of other
trophies.
Guardiola did concede, though, that there was likely to be a
time limit for his tenure in charge of the club.
"I know that sooner or later I will cease to be coach of
Barca and I have to enjoy the time I'm here to the maximum," he
added.
"A coach of Barca can't be here for life just because I think
you have to sign for short periods during which the coach has to
earn things, with the players, with the fans...
"I wanted to see if that was happening, if I had the support
of the players, the board.
"I feel strong enough to carry on. I don't want to be here
for what we've done but for what we must do now."
Guardiola has been a revelation since being promoted from
Barca's B team in the summer of 2008 to replace Frank Rijkaard in
charge of the senior team.
In his first season in charge Guardiola helped Barca become
the first Spanish team ever to win the treble of Champions League,
Primera Division and Copa del Rey.
Then the all-conquering Catalans added three more trophies in
2009 to cap their record-breaking year, winning the Spanish and
European Super Cups last summer and then picking up the Club World
Cup in December.
In total, Barca have won 67 of their 95 competitive matches
under Guardiola, losing just nine times, whilst scoring an average
of more than 2.4 goals per game.
Guardiola, who has recently been linked with a move to
Manchester United as a possible replacement for Sir Alex Ferguson
when the Scot steps down at Old Trafford, admits he would have
preferred to wait until the end of the season to make any
announcement about his future.
However, he felt recent events, primarily last week's Copa
del Rey exit at the hands of Sevilla, had changed things.
"It (cup exit) makes the weeks seem longer. It had created a
situation that was already uncomfortable for everyone - we had to
kill the issue," he said.
Barca president Joan Laporta, who said this weekend that he
wanted a decision from Guardiola on his future by Easter, was
delighted to secure the ongoing services of someone he believes is
the top coach in the game.
"I think that it's very good news for everyone associated
with Barcelona because we all wanted Pep to continue," Laporta
said.
"He doesn't like me saying it, but Pep Guardiola is the best
coach in the world and we are proud to continue to have him here."
Laporta also insisted that this summer's elections had no
influence on today's announcement regarding Guardiola.
"The electoral process is independent of all this," he said.
"This leaves us very calm and, putting myself in the shoes of
the possible (presidential) candidates, I think they will have
peace of mind of knowing who the coach will be and they will only
have to be concerned about establishing the conditions and length
of his contract."
