Pep Lijnders has left Manchester City after less than a year working under Pep Guardiola, explaining the move was driven by family plans and the club’s offer of different roles. Lijnders also detailed three specific demands Guardiola made when he persuaded him
Pep Lijnders didn’t leave Manchester City with drama—he left with clarity. For the former Liverpool assistant and Guardiola’s right-hand man, the decision has been shaped as much by family as by football.
Lijnders has stepped away from the Etihad, following Pep Guardiola out of the building. The Dutchman was brought into City’s setup in the summer after being persuaded by the Spaniard, but he insists his time in Manchester was never meant to stretch long-term.
“My wife and I want a permanent place for our growing sons,” Lijnders said to Dutch publication AD. “Moving back to England for years is no longer an option.” He added that without his family, he “wouldn’t do a second year anyway.”
City’s squad of coaches and senior staff also changes around him. Lijnders’ departure comes alongside the exits of Kolo Toure, Lorenzo Buenaventura, Manel Estiarte and Xabi Mancisidor. Enzo Maresca is set to appoint his own backroom staff when he takes over at the club.
Lijnders was famed for assisting Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool until the German’s departure, but the move to City came once Guardiola called him in May last year. Lijnders says Guardiola was immediately open to discussing the role.
“When Pep called in May last year, he was immediately open,” Lijnders said. “He said: ‘I want to build a new City one more time’. He knew how Jürgen and I worked together at Liverpool and had Klopp’s blessing to sound me out.”
The pitch, Lijnders says, included a time limit. Guardiola told him he was in the final two years of his contract.
“So it’s not about a long-term project. Is that a problem for you?” Lijnders recalled Guardiola asking.
The coach then moved to what he wanted from Lijnders specifically—three demands that shaped how City planned to work. Lijnders said Guardiola was looking for “three things specifically”: a coach by his side who would challenge him with fresh ideas. a more aggressive playing style to survive the increasingly physical Premier League. and innovation on the training pitch.
Lijnders’ account of Guardiola’s day-to-day methods is where the “intensity” comes through. He described Guardiola as relentlessly involved in preparation, comparing his match-plan work to surgery.
“He is very intense,” Lijnders said. “Every day we were busy from morning until evening. He approaches creating a match plan like a surgeon performs heart surgery: extremely meticulously, checking every vital part with tweezers.”
For all the detail and pressure, Lijnders insists Guardiola’s style is also built on a clear emotional foundation. “And, just like Klopp, he has genuine love for his players,” he said. “That, that love, is what distinguishes the absolute top coaches from the rest.”
While Lijnders’ exit is personal, the institutional changes are straightforward. City has announced it will say goodbye to five members of staff, thanking them for their work and dedication, and wishing them “the very best of luck in the future.”
The other departures provide their own link to Guardiola’s era. Toure was appointed to Guardiola’s coaching staff last season after working with City’s development teams. Before joining that setup, Toure had previously worked as manager of Wigan and assisted Brendan Rodgers at Leicester.
Fitness coach Buenaventura had worked with Guardiola at Barcelona and Bayern Munich as well as City. Estiarte has worked with Guardiola as head of operations at all three clubs. Mancisidor joined City in 2013 under Manuel Pellegrini and remained throughout Guardiola’s reign.
For City, the message now is already written in the next step: Enzo Maresca will bring in his own backroom team when he takes over at the Etihad, leaving Guardiola’s staff structure behind.
In the middle of that transition, Lijnders’ explanation lands with a blunt simplicity. He was persuaded to come with Guardiola’s timetable in mind, he describes an environment he clearly respected, and he still leaves because a life based around constant moves no longer fits his family’s future.
Pep Lijnders Manchester City Pep Guardiola Liverpool Jurgen Klopp Enzo Maresca Kolo Toure Lorenzo Buenaventura Manel Estiarte Xabi Mancisidor coaching staff