Pep Guardiola could be offered a way back into football by the United States, with US Soccer lining up the former Man City boss as their top target if Mauricio Pochettino leaves for Old Trafford.
According to The Athletic, Pep Guardiola has been discussed internally at the United States Soccer Federation, and he is expected to be the first name on their list to replace Pochettino.
That list exists because Manchester United are edging closer to bringing Pochettino back to the Premier League. United have made formal contact with US Soccer over the former Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur head coach, and they can pay his £7.5million ($10million) release clause.
Why US Soccer want a replacement ready
Having someone lined up would make Pochettino’s exit far easier for the federation to accept. United are said to be comfortable with him staying in charge of the national team for the next fortnight, which covers the two-legged Concacaf Nations League quarter-final against Haiti on Saturday and Tuesday.
After that, the Americans could need a new head coach, and the man they want most has not worked since leaving the Manchester City dugout.
Life at the Etihad has moved on quickly without him. Enzo Maresca’s first ten league games have already been measured against Guardiola’s own start in 2016, as we looked at in why Maresca has no 2017 window to rescue Man City.
Is Guardiola ready to end his sabbatical?
This is where US Soccer’s plan runs into trouble. Guardiola is now in the sixth month of his second sabbatical, and he has shown no real interest in returning to management.
Italy found that out in July. Their federation tried to tempt him into the national team job and failed, with the federation’s president explaining: “Pep was honest. He took a sabbatical, partly for family reasons, but if he’d done anything, he would have done it with us.”
His agent, Josep Maria Orobitg, was even clearer in September: “Pep will not coach any club or national team this season.”
It is not only Guardiola who is wanted. His old staff are in demand too, as Lyon showed when they rang him before hiring City’s former set-piece coach.
What Guardiola has said about the USA job
He does have a link to the country, despite never working there. Guardiola spent a year on sabbatical in New York City after stepping down as Barcelona head coach.
When Pochettino was appointed two years ago, Guardiola sounded like a man who understood the appeal of the role: “The USA is fascinating to try to build a project for many years and be able to get the national team to the next step. The potential with the USA is there, given the number of people and sports, and so on.”
He added of Pochettino: “I wish him and the USA, I have friends there, the best of luck. I know he’s a top-class manager, an experienced manager.”
Would Guardiola really take the USA job?
We’d be surprised. His agent ruled out any club or national team for this season, and nothing Guardiola has done since suggests he has changed his mind. Turning down Italy, a country where he played for Brescia and Roma, tells you how serious he is about the break.
But “this season” is not forever. A long-term project with a big player base is exactly the kind of challenge he described in 2024, and US Soccer would be wise to keep the door open even if the answer is no for now.
For City fans, the more pressing question is whether United’s move for Pochettino goes through. If it does, the race to tempt Guardiola back will start properly, and the Americans will not be the last to try.
