Pep Guardiola could reportedly leave Manchester City to coach Neymar and Vinicius Jr

Pep Guardiola has established himself as one of the greatest managers in football history, leading clubs like FC Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City to unprecedented success. However, with his contract set to expire in June 2025, rumors suggest Guardiola could leave City to coach a new team with superstars Neymar and Vinicius Jr.

As The Athletic reports, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) is strongly interested in hiring Pep Guardiola once he decides to leave Manchester City. This is not the first time the confederation showed interest in the Spaniard, they even called him several times during the year, but they’re expecting him to join to build a major project towards the 2030 World Cup.

The Brazilian Federation is taking the chance to hire Guardiola in between a Manchester City’s rebuilding process, where the coach is in his last year of contract, and now the signing of Hugo Viana, following the departure of former director of football and Pep’s right hand Txiki Begiristain. However, near sources told The Athletic that they’re expecting Pep to sign a contract extension for one more year.

After the 4-1 loss against Sporting Lisbon for the UEFA Champions League, a Brazilian reporter asked Guardiola about his future in City. Instead of building up expectation, the Spanish coach said he looking forward to take the team out of the bad run of results and injuries:

“More than ever, I want to lift up the team and return them to their top level. It is a tough challenge, but I am here. It will be a tough season — we knew that from the start. But this is what it is. I like it, I love it, I want to face it and lift my players and try it,” Pep Guardiola said

Guardiola’s situation in between City’s 115 charges

Manchester City are going through several changes in the team, with Pep’s future in the air, and facing a trial for 115 charges after breaching the Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) of the Premier League. Th final verdict will be sentenced in early 2025, so Guardiola and City will have time to prepare for the next season.

In order to give clarity, Guardiola was set to give his decision even before final verdict. However, as reported from The Athletic, if City were found guilty and did receive a harsh punishment, he would be more likely to stay. The main argument of this theory is that the coach wouldn’t want to leave the club in a vulnerable position, whether they get deducted points or even relegated.

“I will not delay any action knowing that I’m creating a problem for the club. If I feel I’m a problem for the club, I will take a decision as quickly as possible. But I don’t have that feeling, they understand the reasons I have,” Pep said, addressing that the club is not hurried about his decision.

Guardiola has always said that he wants to coach a national team at a major tournament, and he even admitted being really interested in coaching a Brazil national team with stars like Neymar and Vinicius Jr. The final decision will be depending on different factors, but he’s likely to give an answer more sooner than later.