A thunderbolt of a volley from Spain worldwide Xabi Alonso booked Bayern Munich’s place in the DFB Pokal quarter-finals on Tuesday after a 1-0 win over SV Darmstadt 98.
Advertisement
Former Bayern boss Ottmar Hitzfeld has said he expects Guardiola to take over at City, while Franz Beckenbauer, the club’s honorary president, recently suggested United may be more tempting if he does move on.
The critics would say that this Bayern incarnation lacks the raw pace and power of the Jupp Heynckes team that lifted the trophy three seasons ago; though what they lack in sheer force, they more than make up for with their extraordinary command of the ball. “Next week there will be clarity”.
Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has said he will do all he can to keep the Spaniard in Munich.
“I genuinely don’t know where he will go but Manchester United will be high on the list, I would imagine, for the simple reason they are struggling”. Sport Bild reported it would be officially announced after the team’s final match before the Christmas break, at Hannover on Saturday.
Manager Louis van Gaal is coming under increased pressure for the poor brand of football being played at Old Trafford, and with the exit from the Champions League and results starting to go wrong, his long-term future at United appears to be under scrutiny.
The Bayern captain, Philipp Lahm, has told Guardiola that the squad would like him to extend his stay.
Guardiola has won two Bundesliga titles, the German Cup, the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup in his two full seasons as Bayern Munich head coach.
Guardiola took a one-year sabbatical from managing in 2012 before signing with Bayern Munich the next year. It was during that spell that he worked alongside Txiki Begiristain, now City’s director of footballl, and Ferran Soriano, the club’s chief executive.
While he may be on course to win a third successive league title, Guardiola is yet to win the Champions League at the Allianz Arena, something he will surely be motivated by, especially given his predecessor Jupp Heynckes left on the back of an unprecedented treble.
Advertisement
Bayern, who have been knocked out of the Champions League in the semi-finals for the last two seasons under their Spanish manager, will face Juventus in the last 16 of this year’s competition.
