MANCHESTER -- Manuel Pellegrini has warned Manchester City they will face a battle to get Pep Guardiola as he launched a staunch defence of his record in charge.
The Bayern Munich manager is set to announce if he is to stay on the Allianz Arena next season with City the favourites to lure him to the Etihad Stadium -- which would mean that Pellegrini, who has a contract until 2017, is sacked.
But Guardiola, who won the Champions League twice as Barcelona manager, has attracted interest from Chelsea in the past and has been linked with Manchester United, among others.
And Pellegrini believes there will be plenty of competition for the double Bundesliga winner's signature if he does leave Bayern.
"We don't know what Pep will do next season," he said in a news conference. "After that I think Pep is one of the best coaches in the world so if he doesn't continue at Bayern maybe a lot of teams can try to have him manage their team. In my case, I don't have any pressure about that."
Pellegrini won the Premier League title in 2013-14, his debut season in England, and took City to second place last year.
And he suggested that if they become champions for a second time in his tenure, he will have done an excellent job.
"For me the only important thing is to see what I did in my career," he added. "If I finish this season winning the Premier League, to win two Premier Leagues in three years and [finish as] runner up [once] is very important. I'm very happy about my career and my work.
"If I am a manager for around 25 years in different countries and continents and different teams and come to England and have the highest scoring team in history here, that's something for me to be happy about.
"Every owner has the right to see what is the best future for their club. It's not my problem because I don't think for them. My thinking is to try to win and continue in a job where I am happy. After that it's not my decision."
Pellegrini was sacked as Real Madrid manager in 2010 after securing a then club record of 96 points, but finishing second to Guardiola's Barcelona in La Liga.
"You can be happy about your season but after that the owners can make the decision if you continue or not," he said. "That moment was the best Barcelona. With 96 points it should be impossible not to win the title but that year it happened."