Manchester City have officially announced that manager Pep Guardiola will be stepping down at the end of the season.

The Spanish tactician will take charge of his final game with the club in this weekend’s Premier League clash against Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium.

DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL CAUGHTOFFSIDE APP FOR ALL THE LATEST & BREAKING UPDATES – STRAIGHT TO YOUR PHONE! ON APPLE & GOOGLE PLAY

Guardiola’s exit has looked like it’s been coming for some time, and now it has been confirmed on the club’s website this morning.

Pep Guardiola to be replaced by Enzo Maresca at Man City

According to BBC Sport, it’s widely expected that former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca is in line to replace Guardiola as Man City boss.

The Italian tactician left his position at Chelsea earlier this season, and has previously worked under Guardiola on his coaching staff at City.

In truth, though, it will be close to impossible for the club to replace Guardiola, who leaves with six Premier League titles, the Champions League, three FA Cups, and five Carabao Cups.

The 55-year-old, who has also previously managed and enjoyed great success at Barcelona and Bayern Munich, is widely regarded as being up there with the very greatest football managers of all time.

Want more CaughtOffside coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust

Guardiola took over at City in the summer of 2016 and has turned them into a winning machine, playing a sophisticated brand of football that has led not only to silverware, but record-breaking points totals and the first ever run of four Premier League title victories in a row.

This season has also yielded a domestic double of the FA Cup and Carabao Cup, even if City ultimately missed out to Arsenal in a close Premier League title race.