Pellegrini unaware of Guardiola to City rumours

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini refused to be drawn on speculation that he is set to be replaced by Pep Guardiola and insists he is ready for the challenge of reclaiming the Premier League title.

Speculation has mounted in recent days that City have agreed a deal with Bayern boss Guardiola to replace the Chilean at the Etihad Stadium in the close-season.

However, Pellegrini stated that he was unaware of the rumours and that he has not discussed the stories with the club.

“I didn’t read it and I haven’t heard any reports. I repeat, I haven’t heard or seen any reports,” he said. “Nobody told me [about them].”

City may have lost their title to Chelsea this season, but they gave a reminder of their quality on Sunday as Sergio Aguero scored a hat-trick in the 6-0 battering of now-relegated QPR.

And Pellegrini believes it is important for the team to continue playing with their same attacking philosophy if they are to improve next term.

“Not for me but for the club I think it’s important not to change the philosophy of our football,” he added. “I didn’t win the title and I didn’t win the cup this year because I have a conviction of my ideas and football.

“When we won the Premier League last year, we scored a lot of goals and I never commented on our style because you must have conviction with the way you play and when you don’t win, that moment is now and we will continue playing this way.”