Manchester City reportedly see Sporting CP’s manager Ruben Amorim as a potential successor to Pep Guardiola if he leaves.
Guardiola’s contract is up at the end of the season and he has publicly refused to commit his future to the club where he has won six Premier League titles and one Champions League.
With the FA seeing him as their ‘dream target’ to replace Gareth Southgate as England boss – notwithstanding their ongoing talks with Thomas Tuchel – Guardiola’s head could be turned and City require a plan.
They are thus ‘strongly considering’ Amorim, who has won two Portuguese titles with Sporting, according to The Guardian.
It might help City have in recent days agreed a deal for Hugo Viana, the Portuguese side’s sporting director, to replace director of football Txiki Begiristain – an exclusive story by Mail Sport.
Manchester City are ‘strongly considering’ Ruben Amorim as a successor to Pep Guardiola
Guardiola’s contract is up at the end of the season and he has been tight-lipped over his future
City have agreed a deal with Hugo Viana, the sporting director who hired Amorim at Sporting
Viana brought Amorim to Sporting after paying £10million to prise him from Braga and that was seen as a catalyst for their spell of dominance.
Amorim had been seen as the favourite to succeed Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool but that avenue fizzled out before they opted for Arne Slot.
He also flew to London in April to hold talks about taking over from David Moyes at West Ham, but rejected the Hammers and apologised to Sporting fans for jetting off mid-title race, which they went on to win.
Amorim is seen as one of the brightest young coaches in Europe for the way he has punctured the dominance of Porto and Benfica.
Alongside two league titles, he has also won two cups and a super cup at Sporting, as well as leading them as far as the last 16 in the Champions League.
Sporting will host City in the Champions League next month.
It could yet be that Guardiola chooses to stay, though the loss of Begiristain, with whom he is very close after they got to know each other at Barcelona, is a blow.
Amorim, who has won two titles with Sporting CP, is one of Europe’s brightest young coaches
‘I’ve not decided anything, everything can happen. So I don’t know,’ he recently said of his future.
‘I still need to reflect and decide what I want to do’.