Italy are looking for a new manager after failing to qualify for the World Cup, with Josep Guardiola being touted as an ambitious target to pursue.
Josep Guardiola has a contract with Man City until 2027, but could leave a year early (Image: Getty Images)
Former Italy national team star Leonardo Bonucci, while eyeing Manchester City’s manager, asserted that “dreaming doesn’t cost money,” and ambitiously appointed Josep Guardiola to lead the restructuring of the national team.
Italy faces another failure at the World Cup, having failed to qualify for a major tournament. This means the Azzurri have missed the last three World Cups, the last time being in 2014 when they lost to Bosnia on penalties.
A post-mortem investigation began immediately and coach Gennaro Gattuso resigned in the wake of disappointment. Due to mounting pressure, Gabriele Gravina, president of the country’s football federation, also resigned, and legendary Gianluigi Buffon also resigned as head of the team’s national team.
Napoli manager Antonio Conte and Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri are currently the frontrunners to replace him, but Manchester City’s departure remains uncertain and Bonucci would like to see Italy pursue Guardiola.
He said: “If you want a fundamental change in the national team, I think Josep Guardiola is the right person to do it. It’s very difficult, but it costs nothing to dream.”
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Guardiola’s contract with Manchester expires in June 2027, but he has long been keen to coach the national team in a major competition before retiring. The Catalan will celebrate his 10th year at the Etihad this summer, but he remains tight-lipped about his next move.
The City manager could win yet another Premier League title, while also potentially completing a second domestic treble in seven years. He is undergoing a rebuild and leaves the team in a strong position if he moves forward. Similarly, this term’s success may make Guardiola want to stay in a team that is still blossoming.
Italy recently missed out on a third consecutive World Cup (Image: FIGC via Getty Images)
Italy have been in a terrible state since beating England on penalties at Wembley to win the Euro 2020 title. Bonucci scored a goal that night, but insisted his country needed to make big changes.
“In order to regain the respect of the whole world and become a great national team that became world champions, we need the courage to face what is happening. The important thing is to rebuild Italian football from scratch, starting from the defense,” he said.
“Italy needs time and we need a partnership for politics and football to move in the same direction. We have young players with a lot of talent. We need to nurture them, develop them and start anew. The only magic formula is time.”
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