Pep Guardiola managed every farewell with aplomb, except for his own

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In the end, the one farewell Pep Guardiola neglected to choreograph was his own.

After a decade at Manchester City, he has grown acquainted with the art of goodbyes, memorably declaring through tears at Sergio Agüero’s departure: “We cannot replace him. We cannot.”

Never have his words felt more fitting than today, with the departure of perhaps the greatest genius English football has known threatening to leave a crater in the national game.

But what rankles, for both the club and the manager, is the timing.

There is an art form to delivering an announcement this seismic, and the final week of a Premier League season, with City still technically in contention for another domestic treble, is assuredly not the moment.

There is never a middle ground when you lose a figure this transcendent. When the news of Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement emerged in May 2013, it had a galvanising effect, coming in sufficient time for him to be granted a guard of honour at his final home game at Old Trafford.

It helped, too, that Manchester United had already wrapped up the title.........

© Brisbane Times