Guardiola has ‘tempting offer’ to leave Man City and join Ronaldo as top two candidates are named

Man City boss Pep Guardiola has a ‘tempting offer’ to leave the Etihad Stadium in the summer and join a Saudi Arabian side, according to reports.

The Citizens, who play Liverpool on Sunday afternoon, are having a season to forget by their high standards with Guardiola’s side currently fourth in the Premier League after 25 matches.

Man City, who have won the Premier League in each of their previous four attempts, are currently 17 points adrift of leaders Liverpool with 13 games to play.

There is little hope that they will come anywhere near winning the league and it’s still very uncertain if they will qualify for the Champions League next season.

Guardiola could not guide Man City past Real Madrid in the Champions League play-off round on Wednesday night and the Citizens hierarchy could be looking at other candidates to take the club forward.

Rumours on Thursday claimed that Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola – who has also been linked with Real Madrid – is ‘on the agenda’ to replace Guardiola if he leaves Man City.

And now reports in Spain claim that Guardiola’s ‘future is not entirely clear’, despite recently signing a new contract extension, and ‘has an offer to leave City in the summer’ from a Saudi Arabian team and the Catalan ‘is thinking about it’.

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Some sources ‘believe that Guardiola’s message no longer has the same impact on the players’ and recent setbacks ‘have made many question whether the Catalan is still the best option to lead the project’.

And Guardiola could now join Cristiano Ronaldo in the Middle East after a Saudi Pro League side ‘has put an astronomical offer on the table to try to convince the coach to leave European football’.

The report adds:

‘The contract offered to Guardiola would be the highest ever signed by a manager, far exceeding his current salary at City. In Saudi Arabia, Pep is seen as the key piece to continue promoting their league and take the Saudi project to another level.

‘Guardiola has not yet made any decision. His contract with City is still valid and the season is not over yet. However, the tempting Saudi offer could make him reconsider his future .’

Man City, whose board ‘still has faith’ in Guardiola, are considering two potential replacements if the Catalan decides to leave at the end of the season.

Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso and Girona head coach Michel are the ‘two candidates’ to take over from Guardiola but Man City ‘would have to move quickly if they want to secure’ the former as there is interes from all over Europe.

On Michel, the report adds:

‘Beyond his performance with Girona, his main advantage is his connection with the City Football Group , the multinational owner of the Catalan club and Manchester City itself. His knowledge of the game model and his connection with the group’s structure make him an accessible candidate with room for growth.’