Pep Guardiola will lead his Manchester City team out for the 593rd and last time on Sunday at roughly 4 p.m., marking the end of an incredible ten years that have placed him at the table with the best managers the league has ever seen.
He took the helm of City for the first time on August 13, 2016. In a 2-1 victory over Sunderland on the first day of the season, precisely ten years and twenty trophies ago.
Since then, countless players have died. Teams, contests, and coaches. However, Pep has persisted up to this point.
Guardiola would go on to lead City to six Premier League titles overall after they finished third that year. And six will be left, since the Spaniard and his team ultimately lost to Arsenal this time.
However, where are the members of Pep’s original squad now? What are players like Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero, and Kevin De Bruyne doing these days?
Daily Mail Sport delves further.
Ten years ago, Pep Guardiola managed his first Manchester City game, yet he is now scheduled to depart the team.
However, where are the members of his initial City team now? Daily Mail Sport examines it more closely
was controversially chosen over veteran goalkeeper Joe Hart, but after joining City, he was never truly anything more than a No. 2—just ask Kepa Arrizabalaga. Before retirement, he would play for Southampton and Chelsea.
After ending his playing career, Caballero joined Enzo Maresca as assistant manager at Leicester, where he helped lead the team to the Championship in 2024.
Then, Caballero followed Maresca to Chelsea, adding a Club World Cup victory to his resume. He hasn’t done much since leaving the Blues with Maresca, but that is about to change.
With Maresca replacing Guardiola at City, Caballero is anticipated to make a spectacular comeback to the team as assistant manager, completing the circle of his relationship with the Citizens.
Although Sagna joined City in 2014 and stayed at the Etihad for three years before departing at the end of Guardiola’s first season, most Premier League supporters may connect him with his seven-year tenure at Arsenal.
Before retiring in 2019, Sagna played for Benevento and Montreal Impact. He is currently enjoying a luxurious lifestyle in Dubai.
In addition to doing some media work, the Frenchman has his own football app called Ladisfaction that connects amateur players with professional teams.
In addition, he serves as an ambassador for the Dubai Sports Council and keeps a close eye on his son Elias’s career as a player for Al-Jazira in the United Arab Emirates.
The only member of Pep’s initial matchday squad still employed by the team. Not for long, though, as he will leave this summer following a ten-year tenure in the same manner as Guardiola.
One of Guardiola’s first acquisitions at City, center back Stones paid £50 million, the highest amount for an English player at the time. Despite his inexperience, he went on to become one of the greatest center backs of his generation.
Since then, he has also won 20 trophies with the team and seen international success with England, making it to two European Championship finals and a World Cup semifinal.
This summer, Johnny Stones will depart as a free agent; it is unclear what he will do next.
The only player from Guardiola’s first game in charge who is still with the team is John Stones.
In his debut game as the team’s manager, Guardiola put Kolarov, who is primarily a left back, as center back.
The former Serbian international is somewhat associated with City’s past because he was a member of the team that won their first Premier League championship in 2012 under Roberto Mancini, but he was also sent out after just one year of Guardiola’s tenure.
The 40-year-old ended his playing career in 2022 after spending time at Roma and Inter Milan. Following a brief stint as sporting director at Serie B team Pisa, he began a career as a coach.
From 2024 to 2025, he temporarily managed Serbia’s Under-21 team before leaving to accept an opportunity to become Inter’s assistant manager. He recently assisted the team in winning Serie A again and is currently working under Cristian Chivu.
Additionally, it is believed that Kolarov owns and invests in Bor Retail Park in Bor, Serbia.
Another former Arsenal full back who would leave City after a year under Guardiola’s leadership.
After winning the league with City in 2012 and 2014, Clichy went for Istanbul Basaksehir because Pep didn’t think highly of him. He retired in 2023 after playing for Servette in Switzerland for three years.
The 40-year-old works as a pundit as well, but his primary concentration is coaching. He started off as Thierry Henry’s assistant manager for the France Olympic and U21 teams.
However, he secured his first senior position in 2025 as manager of the French Championnat National team Caen. This season, he assisted them in finishing in ninth place.
Fernandinho, a defensive midfielder who played for Manchester City from 2013 to 2022 and served as captain for the latter two of those years, is considered a legend by many.
He won five league titles, the FA Cup, and the League Cup six times during his 383 games at City. In 2021, he captained the side that finished second to Chelsea in the Champions League.
Before retiring in 2025, he would depart and rejoin his old team, Club Athletico Paranaense, in his home country of Brazil.
He is reportedly taking a vacation from football to spend time in Brazil with his family. He had alluded to a possible return to City, saying to Daily Mail Sport last month that “rumours are rumours.” I’m beginning to appreciate my life. I don’t currently have any plans for coaching or returning to the UK, but you never know what can happen in the future. Living here in Brazil with my family makes me very happy. We’ll see what happens in the upcoming season and year.
Fernandinho made 383 appearances for the team after Guardiola named him captain in 2021.
Guardiola’s first captain, filling in for Vincent Kompany, who was hurt that day. Silva, who played at City from 2010 until 2020 before leaving for Real Sociedad in his home country of Spain, is regarded as one of the greatest players of the Pep Guardiola era.
Before retiring in 2023, shortly after tearing his ACL, he played for Sociedad for three years and won four Premier League titles and two FA Cups with City.
He currently operates the prosperous vineyard Bodegas Tameran in Gran Canaria, producing and distributing high-end wines all over the world. Elegant.
After ending his playing career, wine enthusiast David Silva established a prosperous winery in Gran Canaria.
Given his recent decline, it’s simple to overlook Raheem Sterling’s significance in the early Pep Guardiola period.
Before leaving for Chelsea in 2022, the former England winger made 339 appearances for City and won the FA Cup and four Premier League titles. In actuality, he spent four dreadful years at the Blues, where he joined Enzo Maresca’s bomb squad. He also had a brief but unsuccessful loan at Arsenal.
He signed with Robin van Persie’s Feyenoord in the Netherlands in February after having his £325,000-per-week Stamford Bridge contract torn up. However, he is anticipated to depart the team this summer and become a free agent once more after just seven appearances.
The player of the Pep Guardiola era, if you will. Up until the conclusion of the previous season, when the club decided not to give him a new contract and he left, De Bruyne was a mainstay of every Pep team. He he have had an impact on this year’s title competition, one wonders.
The Belgian joined Napoli in Italy, where he has made 20 appearances this season under Antonio Conte. The team lost their title to Inter Milan after winning Serie A the previous season, placing second but 13 points behind the winners.
This season, De Bruyne has been dealing with a severe hamstring injury, and at 34, his prime is already gone. He will be traveling to the World Cup with Belgium this summer, but he still has one more year left on his Napoli contract.
Arguably the greatest player of the Guardola era, center Kevin De Bruyen departed last year.
Nolito, a forward, joined City in 2016 and left a year later. Before leaving because his family was uncomfortable in England, he participated in thirty games and scored six goals.
Before retiring in 2023, he would return to Spain with Sevilla and play for Ibiza and Celta Vigo.
The Spaniard is a well-known media figure in Spain and has been involved in junior football coaching since retiring. He is also familiar with the podcast scene.
Unhappy with the weather in England, Nolito fled Manchester and has since established a media presence in Spain.
Aguero scored 260 goals in 390 games for Man City, making him one of the best strikers the league has ever seen. He stayed until 2021, when he signed with Barcelona, despite the fact that Guardiola wasn’t always fond of him—some have alleged that he attempted to drive the Argentine out when Gabriel Jesus came in 2017.
When Aguero left, Guardiola sobbed and said, “We cannot replace him,” live on television, as fans will recall. That was the responsibility of Erling Haaland.
Regretfully, Aguero’s heart problems forced him to retire three months after joining Barcelona on medical advise.
He is currently involved in a number of endeavors, including racing, media work, and some punditry. He drove a Formula E car in March and faced off against players like Brooklyn Beckham. It has been claimed that he is considering launching his own Formula E team.
When Aguero departed the team, Guardiola notoriously sobbed; the Argentine was forced to retire a few months later.
Subs
Hart, Joe
Guardiola controversially fired longtime City goalie and fan favorite Hart because he preferred a goalkeeper with better footwork.
Now retired, he is becoming more well-known as a pundit for shows like Match of the Day and TNT Sports.
Zabaleta Pablo
Zabaleta, who was also a part of City’s inaugural championship in 2012, left the team after a year under Guardiola’s leadership and played for West Ham for three years before retiring.
He is currently a coach and has been Albania’s assistant manager since 2023, however he was unable to help them make it to the World Cup this summer.
Otamendi, Nicolas
Otamendi won three Premier League championships and the FA Cup while at City till 2020.
He moved to Benfica, where he is still a regular at the age of 38, having made 281 appearances in all competitions. Additionally, he has been a member of Argentina since 2009, and it is anticipated that he will travel to the World Cup this summer to assist his nation in attempting to retain their championship.
Guardiola notoriously benched fan favorite Joe Hart (left) in favor of goalkeepers with superior passing skills.
Fernando
Just a year after Guardiola took over, another player departed the team. He played 102 games for City during his three years there, making up half of the renowned Fernandinho-Fernando tandem.
Due to a knee problem, he retired in 2025 and isn’t doing anything at the moment. However, he has stated that he wants to continue playing football and has been pursuing his coaching certifications.
Delph, Fabian
In 2015, Delph controversially left Aston Villa to join City, where he played 89 games till 2019.
After leaving, he joined Everton, where he retired in 2022. He now occasionally appears in the media, including on City’s social media accounts, but otherwise maintains a low profile.
Navas, Jesus
During his time at City, he was a winger; later in his career, he was a full back. Navas would return to Sevilla after leaving the Etihad in 2017 and make an incredible 705 appearances for the Spanish team overall.
He continues to represent Sevilla as an ambassador after retiring last year, frequently participating in media appearances and training sessions.
Iheanacho Kelechi
There were great expectations for the forward, who was only 19 when he arrived, and he had success with Leicester after leaving the Etihad.
Even if he didn’t quite achieve the heights that many had anticipated, he is currently 29 years old, plays for Celtic, and had a significant impact on the last Scottish Premiership title fight.
