Italy's federation reportedly in talks with Guardiola over national team coach position

There is no indication yet whether the 55-year-old, just a few weeks after the end of his time at Manchester City, wants to take the job. Guardiola has been one of the most distinguished and successful club coaches of the present era for years: He won the Champions League three times with FC Barcelona (2009, 2011) and Manchester City (2023) and was crowned national champion a total of twelve times with these two clubs as well as FC Bayern.

Guardiola's track record of success

According to a report, Italy's federation leadership is making an intensive effort to bring Josep Guardiola on board as the new team chief. Federation chief Malagò did not comment on Guardiola when asked by Sky Sport Italia. The new president of the Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio had recently pointed out that it could well be that the names on his list for the future coach are not limited to Pirlo and Mancini.

Most recently, Roberto Mancini and Andrea Pirlo appeared to emerge as the frontrunners for the position. Mancini was already coach of the Squadra Azzurra from 2018 to 2023 and led them to the European Championship title in 2021. Pirlo, on the other hand, was one of the guarantors of the Italians' most recent World Cup triumph in Germany in 2006 as a player; as a coach, he had largely disappointed, particularly at Juventus Turin and Sampdoria Genoa.

Predecessors Mancini and Pirlo

The change at the top of the Squadra Azzurra had become necessary after the team had missed a World Cup finals tournament for the third time in a row. As a result, national team coach Gennaro Gattuso, team coordinator Gianluigi Buffon, and federation chief Gabriele Gravina had to step down.

Maldini had been brought in by the federation during this phase as Technical Director for the Azzurri. Federation president Malagò had recently persuaded former star player Maldini to take on the role of Technical Director. His most important task now is to find a new national team coach.

Open questions

Should Guardiola actually sign on in Rome, it would be his first engagement as a national team coach. Until now, the Catalan had worked exclusively at club level, where he shaped several top European clubs with his offensive pressing football. For the Italian federation, such a coup would be a statement both sporting and in terms of media attention.

It remains unclear for now how Guardiola himself views a job at federation level. According to Sky Sport Italia, there is as yet no signal from the coach as to whether he can imagine taking on the task. A statement from Guardiola himself was also not initially available.

The search for a new head coach comes at a time when Italy's federation is undergoing profound upheaval. With Maldini, Leonardo, and the federation leadership under Malagò, new players are at work who, with the signing of Guardiola, apparently want to send a signal to their own football public and to international competition.