Pep Guardiola has begun talks with Paris Saint-Germain over becoming their new Coach, but he will not take over until the summer.
L’Equipe report that relatives of the Qatari owners of PSG have confirmed talks with the former Barcelona boss have already been initiated, in reaction to the French side’s unconvincing form of late.
A midweek Cup exit for the Parisians was followed up defeat at mid-table Nice, which has seen the expensively-assembled side slip down to fourth in Ligue 1, five points off top spot.
This decline has been seen as enough to place both Italian Coach Carlo Ancelotti and Brazilian sporting director Leonardo under pressure, with replacements for the duo reportedly already being lined up.
For Ancelotti, L’Equipe believe that Guardiola is the prime target. However, in his reported talks with the club’s owners, the Spaniard is understood to have informed them of his reluctance to come in before the end of this season, in respect of his intention to see through his year-long sabbatical.
PSG are seen as now having a three-man shortlist for the Coach’s position, with Pep joined by Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger. Ancelotti, meanwhile, could be replaced until the end of the season by Eric Gerets.
Any move to PSG would reunite Guardiola with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the Swede who has been publicly highly critical of their season spent together at Barca. Guardiola has also been linked in recent weeks with Manchester City, Manchester United, Milan and Chelsea.
