Josep Guardiola may go down as one of the greatest, if not greatest, coaches in world soccer history. Heck in any sport! Guardiola at only 50 years of age has won 31 championships with the three clubs he has helmed: Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City. Still, everything eventually comes to an end and after coaching three of the biggest teams in the sport, Guardiola may be looking for a new challenge.
According to a report in 90min, City Group, the owner of Manchester City has a plan in place to keep Guardiola in the family so to speak. According to that report, once his reign over Manchester City comes to an end, Guardiola may move to New York to coach NYCFC of Major League Soccer.
NYCFC is a part of the City Group family of clubs and at the moment is fighting to get to their first MLS Cup. Guardiola spent time in New York in 2012 and is said to love the city and could make the leap in 2023 when his Manchester City deal ends.
Josep Guardiola on New York
Josep Guardiola has stated before that New York is “a city I love deeply and over the years, I’ve been lucky enough to see first-hand New Yorkers’ passion for football”. Pep also stated, “Young people want to play and need a place to play. The fact that there are now 50 new football pitches throughout New York City because of NYCFC and our group is amazing and will make a big difference in the lives of young people.I have said it for many years, I believe there is an incredibly bright future for football in the U.S. and amazing projects like this one will play a part in helping to produce the next generation of young American talent.”
Guardiola has had high praises for American goalkeeper Zack Steffen, who has played 16 games across the board for Manchester City but is being groomed to take over the starting position at the club down the road.
As for NYCFC they are currently coached by Ronny Deila, who has led them to their first Eastern Conference final against the Philadelphia Union and a win on Sunday can send the team to their first MLS Cup. No New York team has ever won an MLS Cup to date.
“After seven years on this team (Manchester City), I think I’m going to have a stop. I’m going to have to take a break, see what we’ve done,” Guardiola said when referring to his contract ending in 2023. Guardiola also has plans to coach a national team and would like to coach in South America as well.