The news making shockwaves around the world of football is that of Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola leaving the club after 3 years in charge. The Spaniard had joined Bayern Munich after a successful time at Barcelona, where he won multiple trophies as player and manager. He won 14 trophies as manager of Barcelona in a span of four years and has won five trophies at Munich and could increase that number this season.
It isn’t just trophies which have defined his legacy in the world of management, the Barcelona product has brought out a different style of play which isn’t just about possession but also about movement and in his second season at Bayern Munich, he has even taken out teams without centre backs and still easily won games.
Pep has dominated both La Liga and the Bundesliga and only missed out on the league title once during his time at Barcelona. He seems set to win the league in Germany this time as well but he could move to the Premier League as that is the only top league which he hasn’t taken up a job in – and Italy of course.
It wouldn’t just be a big name that Pep would move to; he would probably want to have cash at his disposal or at least have a few tools in the shed where he can build a team that can dominate the Premier League. That seems to be a tough call at the moment, especially keeping this season in mind but who has the best chance of getting Pep?
Red or Blue: Which colour does Pep choose?
There are four clubs currently in the Premier League, two of which could well be looking to replace their manager at the end of the season while one has an interim manager, all of them would look attractive propositions to Guardiola.
The Spaniard has a win percentage of 73 over his career as a manager and anyone from Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and even Arsenal would love to have him at their club. While Arsenal does seem to be a bit of a stretch seeing how Arsene Wenger hasn’t hinted at leaving the club anytime soon, it could well be any of the other three clubs where Pep picks up the reins.
Chelsea could well be the best option for him, he would have a clean slate to work with as Guus Hiddink is the new interim manager and Roman Abramovich does have the capital to rebuild a team that suits Guardiola but does picking up from where Jose Mourinho left off seem appealing to Pep? That would be a tough ask also having to work with a team that doesn’t really have a lot of belief in themselves would be a problem for Pep.
Manchester United is a viable option at the moment, especially when it seems likely that Louis van Gaal is making more enemies than friends at Old Trafford. The team are not playing at a certain level and it doesn’t seem to get better for the Dutch manager as the team are already out of the UEFA Champions League and are in danger of missing out on the top four this season. Pep would have to overhaul the team completely and that would be a huge task for the Spaniard as United have a lot of deadwood but Ed Woodward has proved that they can sign players and spend a lot of money.
The right choice for Pep at the moment would be Manchester City, the blue half of Manchester City. Manuel Pelligrini might be a great manager but everyone has a shelf life and the club do need someone who exudes passion and control, Pep is the man for City. The club already have an old friend of Pep’s in a senior role at the club Txiki Begiristain, who was brought in from Barcelona and City do have the necessary financial strength to buy Guardiola any players he wants. The club also has probably one of the strongest teams in the country and wouldn’t actually need a lot of investment, they are placed the best amongst the other teams mentioned here and would also give Guardiola the space to get his work done.
Pep would have to win the Champions League with City however, something he hasn’t achieved at Bayern but with the money and support that he would get at Manchester City, who could bet against him achieving that?