“The media did say the season was finished and the next season was starting”, said Pellegrini, who will take charge for the final time against Swansea City on Sunday.
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Pellegrini’s final game in charge on Sunday, a 1-1 draw at Swansea, effectively booked City’s place in the Champions League next season when Pep Guardiola will be the manager.
David had a lot of competition with many others also finishing on 22 points but he was the only player to correctly predict the fifth-minute Golden Goal courtesy of Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud. Nevertheless, the home crowd at Wales makes life tough for visiting teams and that is something than Manchester City will have to overcome if they wish to play Champions League football next season.
It will be an interesting summer in Manchester, however we should all appreciate the job that Pellegrini has done in the three years he has been with the club. “It’s not easy to finish a cycle, especially after three years of being very happy to work here”.
With Leicester City crowned champions and the three relegated teams already decided, there’s only one more thing up for grabs: fourth place and a berth in next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Despite resting several key players, they were sharp from start to finish and it was important that a couple of key players showed glimpses of their better form as Ki Sung-Yueng and Bafetimbi Gomis both found the net.
Mathematically, sixth-place West Ham could still also finish fourth but it is highly unlikely, given the team is three points behind City and has an inferior goal difference of 15.
The Chilean saw his team beaten 3-1 by Leicester in February at the end of the week when Guardiola’s forthcoming switch from Bayern Munich was confirmed and, speaking to Sky Sports after the Swansea match, he said this affected the mood in his dressing room.
“I can confirm my jacket was empty”.
Regardless, Guardiola’s entrance for the 2016-17 season has for a long while been on the cards and the media scope that took after the news may have demolished City.
“I had just been focusing on our final game because it was very important to finish in a good way so now I will be seeing different options”.
So this August, City will play in a two-leg playoff for a spot in the group stage.
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“We need to go for the win and play with the same intensity we did against Arsenal”, he added.
