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Pep Guardiola reportedly open to coaching Italy as his Manchester City future remains uncertain, with salary demands the key obstacle to a brilliant move.
Pep Guardiola is in line to become Italy coach (Picture credit: AP)
Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola would consider becoming Italy coach, in what might come as a shocking move into international management for the star coach, who has numerous titles with City, according to a report in La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Italy will appoint a new head coach after June 22, when a new president of the Italian Football Federation is elected. As per the report, Guardiola’s future at Manchester City remains uncertain despite his contract running until June 2027.
As per the report, if Guardiola leaves Manchester City, he wouldn’t take up another club role, instead opting for a break to recover after years of intense work at the Etihad Stadium.
But this doesn’t mean Guardiola would take a full sabbatical, having already done so in 2012 and a national team role could represent an ideal compromise.
As per the report, Guardiola, a former midfielder for Brescia Calcio and AS Roma, has developed a strong connection with Italy and would be open to considering an offer to coach Italy.
As per the report, Guardiola didn’t rule out coaching in Italy back in 2018, although he later admitted: “Every nice thing happening in Italy makes me happy, but I think I would rather go there on holiday than to coach.”
“I think it is very hard, but dreaming does not cost anything,” Italy legend Bonucci said.
The main stumbling block is financial. Guardiola, who has been linked with Brazil as well, earns around €24.8 million gross at Manchester City, a figure well beyond the usual reach of the Italian Football Federation.
By comparison, Roberto Mancini earned about €3 million net after leading Italy to the European Championship, still nowhere near Guardiola’s current pay. But the federation can point to a precedent: when Antonio Conte took charge in 2014, a sponsor covered a significant portion of his salary.
April 24, 2026, 4:28 PM IST
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