Guardiola´s dad backs decision

The father of Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola feels his son made the right decision to take a break from football.

Guardiola recently announced that he will leave Barcelona at the end of the season, and his father said Pep needs the rest.

“Pep was absolutely exhausted and overworked. He was thinking about football 24 hours per day, and always thought about the fans and the people who care about the club. It was a big responsibility for him,” Valenti Guardiola told Catalunya Radio.

“I don’t know what he will do next, but I do know that he will enter his next job with the same commitment that he showed at Barca.”

Meanwhile, Dolors Guardiola, Pep’s mother, was impressed with the farewell the 41-year-old received at Barca last weekend.

“His farewell was very beautiful and touching. When Pep told me that he would leave Barca, I saw that he needed a place of tranquillity,” she said.

“It hurt a bit because Barca is Barca, but health comes before everything else.”

Guardiola has two more games left in charge of Barcelona as they prepare for the La Liga match against Betis on Saturday, before locking horns with Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey final on May 25.