Pep Guardiola's new 'side hustle'! Man City boss launches 'Monarka Clinic' with doctor and therapist back in Barcelona

Reported by The Sun, Guardiola has put his 'cash and image' behind the Monarka Clinic, which was launched last month alongside a doctor and a therapist. While Guardiola will not be treating patients himself, he will look to make a positive impact in accompanying and supporting his colleagues Dr Mireia Illueca and Montse Escobar in their important work.

Guardiola was treated by Dr Illueca himself a few years ago following a back injury and has remained in contact with the doctor since, which led to her inviting him to collaborate on this project. Guardiola has been at City for nine years and the belief is that he may step away from his managerial role at the end of his contract to take a '15-year break', possibly back in Barcelona, so the beginning of this new project makes sense.

Guardiola said: “I had a back problem and she fixed it, and since then we’ve gotten to known each other and become very close. She told me about the clinic and her project, about the things she wants to do. As I’ve always believed that sport, health and wellness are all fundamental, she asked me: ‘Why don’t we work together?’

“And I replied, ‘Why not?’ And here we are. I’m not going to cure anyone, but I’ll keep her company while she does. I’ve already been doing that for a while.

“As I am now I’m 75 years old! I’m a wreck, everything hurts right now. So, if it's my biological age… maybe if I take the test, I'll come out younger. I hope to be better than I am now in a while. A friend of mine, who I think defined me very well, once told me that I have three states as a person: euphoric, depressed, and absent. Those are my three states. So the point is to try to stay in the middle of these three.

"[People in football are] waiting for me to fail? Yes, yes, I’m sure that’s true. And I’m delighted to see them too. Delighted. That gives you energy. In competition, you need people to say to you: 'Really? We’ll see about that.' They were the ones who said: 'He won’t be able to do it in Germany, he was at Barcelona because of who he knew,' and 'In England, you’ll see, English football is different.' Well, no. We did it. And then we did it again and again. Do things sometimes go wrong? Of course they do."

Guardiola and City begin their Premier League campaign against Wolves at Molineux on August 16 as they aim to take back the league title from Arne Slot's Liverpool. After going trophyless last season and a busy summer transfer window to follow, Guardiola may find himself under pressure from sections of the media if recent struggles continue. How much longer the 54-year-old remains as the Sky Blues' manager beyond this season remains to be seen.