Those appointed at Barcelona and Bayern Munich in previous years are all related to Pep Guardiola. At Barcelona, Tito Vilanova was an assistant for 4 years before being appointed.
Luis Enrique was a midfielder for Pep at Barca, and was also Barcelona B coach before taking the school coaching position. After a four-year hiatus, the Blaugrana have once again appointed a person related to Pep, that is former student Xavi Hernandez.
At Bayern Munich, 8 years after Pep left the chair, the "Gray Tigers" appointed Vincent Kompany, who was the captain of Man City in the first 3 years of Pep's era at Etihad Stadium.
In general, many people who later became head coaches of the teams Pep led have quite close relationships with the Spanish coach.
Among Pep Guardiola's students, who used to be assistants under him, there are two very prominent people today: Mikel Arteta (Arsenal) and Enzo Maresca (Ch Chelsea). Previously, the pre-appointed replacements for Pep at Man City were Arteta and Kompany. However, both could not wait until Pep left the team and had very good stops.
With Arteta and Kompany both at home, it is very difficult for Man City to bring them back to replace Pep. Therefore, the most likely person could be Enzo Maresca. The Italian has won a title with Chelsea and is not under pressure to build or maintain an empire.
Among all the teams, the style of play that Maresca has applied at Chelsea over the past 18 months is most similar to Pep's style of play, at least in terms of basic principles. Slow play, deliberate tactics and the ability to put pressure. A chess tactical thinking person admitted that he watched the match through the eyes of his former teacher.
When Pep looked at his two predecessors, Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, he thought it would be unfortunate if his legacy had no immediate successors. Man United have waited for 13 years without winning the Premier League. Meanwhile, Wenger's final years at Arsenal, although unsuccessful, still have identity. After that, up to this point, the "Gunners" still could not win the championship.
If Man City win the Premier League this season, Pep Guardiola will likely leave the team in glory. He has won many titles in the past, but if he wins at the end of the season, this could be the most meaningful title because it will create a great foundation for the next person.
Last month, before reporters needed to ask, Pep gave Maresca wingsome compliments: "He is one of the best coaches in the world. What Maresca is doing is not properly assessed. Chelsea's ticket to the Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup and Conference League in the current context of intense competition is really extraordinary".
To be promoted with Leicester and win the cup with Chelsea, Maresca's only imitating Pep is not enough. At Stamford Bridge, he was tasked with leading a team of young players and building a collective style of play.
He has won 2 titles and with the current freshness of Man City, it is a positive sign for Maresca's ability to develop personally and achieve the results if he joins the Etihad.
Maresca also had a year leading the elite youth team of Man City, where he won the Premier League 2 championship when coaching tomorrow's stars Cole Palmer, Nico O'Reilly and Oscar Bobb.
As for his relationship with the board, Maresca has an unreally close relationship with the Chelsea owners, unlike what he had at the Etihad with the owners of the City Football Group.
One of the obstacles if Maresca arrives at Man City in the summer of 2026 is that there will not be many inheritance. In the team that won the treble in 2023, there were 8 players who had trained with Maresca: Stefan Ortega, John Stones, Bernardo Silva, Nathan Ake, Ruben Dias, Rico Lewis, Phil Foden and Erling Haaland. By next summer, 3 people will have expired their contracts.
When Maresca arrived at Chelsea, he built the same style of play as Man City did two years ago. However, the team has now been built in a different style, so if Maresca comes, the integration could have many problems.
Everything now depends on Pep's decision. If he leaves in the summer of 2026, Man City will be looking for him. Otherwise, no matter how excellent Enzo Maresca is, the desire to move to the Etihad Stadium as captain will become a distant reality.
