Pep Guardiola confirmed as next Manchester City manager

It's an ill-kept secret to rival the likes of the false existence of Father Christmas and the real cause of UFOs (you mean you didn't know?).

Manchester City have confirmed that Pep Guardiola will become their new head coach on 1 July.

The Spaniard, currently manager of Bayern Munich, has signed a three-year deal with the Manchester team. 

Manuel Pellegrini has stated he is "content with the decision". Sure he is.

Here's the statement that Manchester City have published on the appointment:

Manchester City can confirm that in recent weeks it has commenced and finalised contractual negotiations with Pep Guardiola to become MCFC Head Coach for the 2016/17 EPL season onwards.

The contract is for three years. These negotiations were a re-commencement of discussions that were curtailed in 2012.

Out of respect for Manuel Pellegrini and the players, the Club wishes to make its decision public to remove the unnecessary burden of speculation.

Manuel, who is fully supportive of the decision to make this communication, is entirely focused on achieving his targets for the season ahead and retains the respect and commitment of all involved with the leadership of the Club.

To see how the signing has gone down, a quick skim of the Twitter replies to the Club's announcement make for an interesting (and NSFW) read... 

Keep it classy, Manchester City.

(Image: Rex)