The North Stand at Etihad Stadium, Manchester, will be named ‘The Pep Guardiola Stand’, Manchester City has announced.
Pep Guardiola will leave Manchester City at the end of the season after a decade in charge, the club announced on Friday, bringing an end to one of the most successful eras in English soccer and one of the most influential managerial reigns of all time.
Guardiola, who took charge of City in 2016, has won six Premier League titles, three FA Cups, five League Cups and the Champions League, but his side have not won the league in two years.
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The stand will be fully open for the first time for the manager’s final game in charge at the Club, the concluding game of the season against Aston Villa on Sunday.
“I said a long time ago that Manchester City should have the very best people at its disposal, both on and off the field. For ten years Pep has been the personification of that ambition,” Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan said.
“He has made an indelible imprint on the DNA of the Club. One that is borne more from how he won than from the many trophies he lifted.”
As part of the renaming, a statue of Pep will also be commissioned and feature on the approach to The Pep Guardiola Stand.
“The Pep Guardiola Stand, and the statue that will sit outside it, rightly ensure that Pep’s legacy will remain forever woven into the fabric of this football club, the city of Manchester and English football,” the Club’s Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak commented.
Under development since late 2023 the newly expanded stand adds over 7,000 new seats to Etihad Stadium, bringing the stadium capacity to over 61,000.
Source: Khaleej Times