Pep Guardiola among ‘very powerful block of supporters’ for potential next Manchester City manager – Interest dates back to 2019 | OneFootball

Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola is among a ‘very powerful block of supporters’ for one potential candidate to succeed him in the hot seat at the Etihad, according to reports.

The Catalan coach continues to weigh up his options ahead of a final decision on his Manchester City future, with his existing contract – renewed in November 2022 – expiring at the end of the ongoing season.

Guardiola has often insisted that much of the support behind any decision to extend his stay will depend on his players and their intent to take instruction and buy into his plans, which the 53-year-old insists is still the case.

From the side of Manchester City, they will have no doubt in their own mind that they would like to continue with Pep Guardiola as their head coach, but given the success over the last eight previous seasons, no pressure will be applied on the manager to make a decision.

In the meantime, City officials including sporting director Txiki Begiristain and his successor Hugo Viana may look within the European game for potential successors in the managerial hot-seat, should a move for a new head coach be required.

According to the information of Manchester City insider ‘Tolmie’s Hairdoo’ on X, Bayer Leverkusen’s Xabi Alonso has a ‘very powerful block of supporters’ within the Etihad Stadium, including current head coach, Pep Guardiola.

It is explained that the breakout Bundesliga tactician was Guardiola’s number one choice to become his assistant coach after Mikel Arteta brought an end to his stay with the club in 2019 to become head coach at Arsenal.

However, despite no such move coming to fruition, it is claimed that Manchester City were left ‘extremely impressed’ with Alonso’s loyalty towards his employers at that time, La Liga club Real Sociedad.

In a move that may boost Manchester City’s hopes of making Xabi Alonso their next manager, it is also reported that the 42-year-old inserted a clause in his contract renewal at Leverkusen which included accepting any offer from the Etihad Stadium and ‘some other big clubs’.

City officials may feel as though any successful move for Xabi Alonso as their next manager may benefit them in the transfer window too, with the club being admirers of a number of players within the Bayer Leverkusen set-up.

At the very forefront of that admiration is likely to be Florian Wirtz, who has played an integral role in Leverkusen’s success over the last two seasons in particular, while Jeremie Frimpong has been tipped as a possible long-term successor to Kyle Walker.

Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi is another player that Manchester City regard highly, and a name that Xabi Alonso knows well from his time with the Spanish club, with the Premier League champions still looking to source suitable support for the injured Rodri.

Pep Guardiola himself has remained relatively tight-lipped on his future, pushing back on any questions put to him during press conferences, reiterating the fact that a decision is yet to have been made.