Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola says thinking about leaving his job every day keeps him motivated.

“Not a day goes by without thinking ‘I’m off,’” said Guardiola in a promotional interview released yesterday. “I think that wherever you go to coach, you always have to be mindful that tomorrow you might leave.”

Guardiola has won two Champions Leagues and three Spanish titles in 3½ years in charge at the Catalan club. He told film director Fernando Trueba he had wanted to become a coach since he was 25.

Despite the success, rumours in Spanish media have suggested Guardiola might step down at the end of the season.

Although he did not suggest he was about to resign, Guardiola said staying fresh was a key concern.

“I work better thinking that I’ve got the freedom to decide my future,” he said. “Long-term contracts that tie you to a place you might not like make me anxious. I’m incapable of planning anything for more time than half a year or a year. I find it impossible.”