26 January 2023 , 19:26
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Pep Guardiola has opened the door to a sensational return to Barcelona and claimed he would walk out on Manchester City if the opportunity arose.
The City boss spent four trophy-laden years in the dugout at the Camp Nou from 2008 to 2012, winning a myriad of trophies including two Champions League titles, having had a successful career there too as a player. He has previously appeared to rule out a return to the club as a coach.
However, Guardiola told reporters this week during a press conference: "If I'm training here, wherever and Barcelona calls me, I'll go to Barcelona, it's my club."
The comments were prompted by Guardiola speaking highly of Mikel Arteta, who was a first-team coach in the blue half of Manchester prior to being appointed Arsenal manager. The Spaniard was a former midfielder at the Gunners with the City boss claiming he could empathise with his situation.
Guardiola said of his former coach: "This boy likes Arsenal. Everyone has dreams and I know he went to his club, the club he dreamed of. He was a fan of Arsenal by playing there, he was captain and he loved that club so I did not want to oppose him. Life is too short. You have to fly."
Pep Guardiola went back on his word after blocking last-ditch Barcelona transfer
However, the current City boss has appeared to previously rule out a return to Barca, saying in 2020: "I said many times: my period as a manager in Barcelona is over. I think in life there is a once in a lifetime, you have to do the things... there are incredible people who can be in charge.
Guardiola has at times struggled to get the best out of his players this season (Getty Images)Have Your Say! Would Guardiola returning to Barcelona be a bad idea? Tell us what you think here.
"Now, for example, Ronald Koeman (Xavi is now Barca boss) is an excellent manager. It's over. I will come back to my seats to see my club to watch the game. But it's done. I am here, incredibly happy, and still have the desire to do well. This is the most important thing."
It comes just days after Guardiola outlined the moment when he will decide to stop managing City, where he has been in the dugout since 2016. It is comfortably the longest managerial stint of the Catalan's coaching career to date.
"I won four LaLiga titles in Spain when I was a player at [Barcelona], four in a row, and the fifth [season] was not the same and the sixth was not the same," Guardiola explained to reporters, stating that he would be aware when he had lost his drive.
"I was not starving enough. [Too much] caviar, [Real] Madrid beat me. I understand [the players] but I am here to [motivate them]. The chairman knows that. I want to be here but if I lose the team, I cannot be here. We are second in the table, we are not 25 points behind Arsenal, still we are there - 57 points still to play [for]."