Manchester City Manager Pep Guardiola has been at the club seven years, and if he fulfils his current deal, running until 2025, he will have tripled the time he has spent at any other club. However the Catalan coach is beginning to contemplate his next move.
There has always been an appetite to bring Guardiola back to Barcelona, a place he still refers to as home, but the next frontier is international football for Guardiola.
Previously linked with the Brazil post ahead of the 2014 World Cup and again following Tite’s exit last winter. However it appears Carlo Ancelotti is the favourite to take over the Selecao.
Bar Canaletes report that Guardiola previously offered himself to the English FA back in 2012, but instead they went for Roy Hodgson following on from Fabio Capello’s spell. Now, with Gareth Southgate approaching his fourth and perhaps final tournament in charge of the English national team, again talks have begun between the two sides.
In theory the idea is that Guardiola would take over in 2025, following the end of his City contract, giving him a year to prepare for the World Cup in 2026 in the USA, Canada and Mexico. That said, it is not ruled out that Guardiola ends his spell at City in the summer of 2024, having now achieved every trophy possible in the job.
It is noted by Bar Canaletes that this is very much in the idea phase as opposed to a set plan, but certainly it is a scintillating prospect. Guardiola has had a major impact on the English game, and several of the Three Lions’ biggest stars play for Guardiola at City already. Guardiola has a complicated relationship with Spain, and seems unlikely to take over rivals Italy or France. Following a lukewarm exit from Bayern Munich, Germany seems an unlikely destination, while Guardiola would likely require a more stable environment than Argentina too, leaving England as a standout candidate amongst the old powers of the game.
