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‘This is good’ – Lots of Man City fans react as Citizens eye free agent to replace key club figure

Photo of Kyle Archer Kyle Archer | 15:00 17/08/20

Lots of Manchester City fans have been reacting on social media to reports by The Sun, claiming the Citizens are eying Mauricio Pochettino amid doubts over Pep Guardiola’s future.

It is alleged Pochettino has his admirers behind the scenes at the Etihad Stadium, who would not be afraid of approaching the former Tottenham Hotspur head coach should Guardiola decide to walk away.

The club’s hierarchy would prefer to keep Guardiola beyond his current deal, which is set to expire next summer, but the Catalan is yet to offer any assurances that he sees his long-term future in Manchester.

City chiefs are fearful that Guardiola’s stance could leave the club in limbo, while the tactician admitted last month that Chairman Khaldoon al Mubarak was “not happy” with our failure to retain the league title.

Failing to win FA Cup after defeat in the Semi-Final to Arsenal and the Champions League after defeat to Lyon is not expected to have helped ease the situation at the Etihad Stadium, where Pochettino is well-known to the powerbase from his time with Espanyol.

Pochettino would prefer to stay in England for his next managerial role and has yet sold his Hertfordshire home, too, but has also emerged as a potential candidate to replace Quique Setien at Barcelona after the La Liga outfit’s humiliating Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich.

Only a handful of Man City fans would appear open to seeing Pochettino replace Guardiola, though, with many rushing to social media but only a few calling for the ex-Tottenham boss to join our project.

For a lot of the Etihad Stadium fanbase, current RB Leipzig head coach Julian Nagelsmann would be the preferred candidate to replace Guardiola if the Catalan is too leave Manchester.

Loads of fans have been sharing their favoured alternatives to Pochettino in response to the rumoured links, with names such as Nagelsmann, AFC Ajax boss Erik ten Haag, former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique and even Roberto Mancini touted instead.

Nagelsmann took charge of Leipzig last summer after three seasons with TSG Hoffenheim, and has led the Red Bull-backed side to a Champions League Semi-Final with Paris Saint-Germain after a third-placed Bundesliga finish.

Leipzig have also won 26 of their 46 games with the 33-year-old at the helm, whilst boasting a plus-55 goal difference and a points per game equivalent of 2.00 across all competitions.

Lots of City supporters would still like to see Guardiola remain in the Etihad Stadium dugout for the foreseeable future, though, and hope reports of the board looking at alternatives are not true despite the weekend’s devasting defeat.

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