Well, that really has thrown the Catalan amongst the pigeons in Trafalgar Square. Pep Guardiola for England? Guardiola spoke on Italian TV show ‘Che Tempo Che Fa’ on Sunday of having been contacted in the summer by the FA but emphasised his commitment to Manchester City. And that has launched a thousand headlines.
On the back of Lee Carsley’s unconvincing performances as interim, fans want an elite-level manager. Speaking to England fans yesterday, I asked who they wanted as England manager, and did he have to be English? “I don’t mind if he’s German as they were brilliant to us at the Euros, they wanted us to win after they went out,” replied one fan, thinking about Thomas Tuchel also being linked with the job. “I don’t mind whatever country they come from as long as he’s not Scottish or Argentinian.”
Leaving aside fans’ complex issues with the land of Stevie Clarke and Diego Maradona, the mood was one of accepting a foreigner to lead the Three Lions, especially if it were somebody of Guardiola’s calibre. They want a real tactician, an alchemist who can turn a good collection of players into winners. Guardiola would be welcomed by players as well as fans. He is the pre-eminent coach in the world along with Carlo Ancelotti. He knows many of the players, having worked with them (Walker, Stones, Lewis, Foden, Grealish, Palmer) or set up tactics to counter them (Saka, Kane, Gordon). He knows many of the uncapped talents emerging (Trafford, McAtee, Delap, Rogers).
Before Guardiola arrived at City in 2016, I made a short film for the BBC on why an initially sceptical nation should embrace Guardiola. Reservations expressed at the time revolved around Guardiola’s achievements at Barcelona being more because he had a magnificent group of players, and one of the greatest of all times in Lionel Messi. He then failed to win the Champions League at Bayern Munich.
But his one-on-one coaching makes good players better. His man-management, often challenging players, makes them better. His meticulous approach to analysing opponents’ weaknesses gave City even more of a chance. And so it proved. Of course, Guardiola had access to huge resources to build his era-defining team but his inspirational impact cannot be questioned. His hunger for victory further motivates the players.
He has spoken in the past about a desire to coach a national side one day, competing for the World Cup. Spain would be difficult because of his Catalan roots and stance. England, with their vast array of talent, would surely attract an ambitious coach. Winning a first trophy since 1966 would be a formidable achievement. Guardiola hardly needs his legacy cementing but such a feat, winning the 2026 World Cup, would enhance it.
And this England squad have a trophy in them. If Guardiola had been in charge of England’s players at the Euros would they have got over the line? Probably. That would have been a final, Guardiola versus Spain! Guardiola would have got the balance right, had England better prepared for dealing with Spain’s threat out wide in Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal and made his substitutions more decisively.
You know there’s a “but” coming. Is it simply a dream by the FA? You have to admire their ambition but would Guardiola take the job? Is all the current speculation simply going to build fans’ hopes up and then crush them when Guardiola signs a new deal at City? He’s obviously in an intriguing position where his City contract expires next summer but there is an obvious financial gulf between national salaries and elite club ones: Guardiola is on three times the £5m-6m that Gareth Southgate was on. He would know that to achieve his dream of managing at a World Cup he would have to take a cut but there is also another consideration. Would he seriously take a third of his current salary for 10 times the grief?