Pep Guardiola

Pep Guardiola leaving Barcelona
Updated: April 27, 2012, 3:30 PM ET
Associated Press
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BARCELONA, Spain -- In front of some of the players he molded into one of soccer'sgreatest teams, Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola said Friday he will leave at the end of the season and bring to a close a four-year reign of unprecedented success.
Guardiola said during a newsconference at Camp Nou that the demands of the job were too great and his energy levels too low to continue. He will be replaced by his assistant, Tito Vilanova.
"Every day during four years, the demands arevery high, the pressure, the necessary energy to push the players and enjoy it," said the 41-year-old Guardiola, a former Barcelona midfielder. "I need to rest and move away.
Luis Gene/AFP/GettyImages Coach Pep Gladiola’s contract ends at the close of the season and the former player rejected Barcelona's offer to extend his deal.
Already Barcelona's most successful manager, Guardiola can add a14th trophy when his team plays the Copa Del Rey final May 25 against Athletic Bilbao in his last game.
His announcement came six days after a loss to Real Madrid that pretty much ended Barcelona'srun of three straight Spanish league titles, and three days after the Blaugrana were eliminated by Chelsea in the Champions League semifinals.
Guardiola said he made his decision in December butpreferred to wait until the team's chase for the major trophies was out of the way. He had extended his rolling one-year contract by February in each of the past two seasons, but his decision not to do sothis time led to ongoing speculation.
"I'm very sorry for all of the uncertainty I created over this time over my future. Maybe that was an error of mine," Guardiola said. "I didn't mean to create...