President of FC Barcelona Josep Bartomeu has kept the door open on a potential return of former player and coach Pep Guardiola.
The current Manchester City boss was at the helm of affairs at Camp Nou from 2008 to 2012, following an eleven-year spell as a player. During his tenure, the Blaugrana successfully won 14 trophies across all competitions, including three La Liga and two UEFA Champions League titles. He subsequently completed a switch to Bayern Munich in 2013 and then moved to Manchester City in 2016 where he has since been.
In the past, Guardiola flirted with the idea of returning to Barcelona someday while maintaining that his time there brings fond memories. He specifically expressed interest in nurturing young talents at the clubs famed La Masia academy.
Momentarily, the Catalan club is enjoying great success under the supervision of Ernesto Valverde while Guardiola himself is in contention for a quadruple with Manchester City this season. However, President Josep Bartomeu claims that the 48-year-old manager could be more or less considered to take over the Camp Nou outfit should the vacancy present itself and failed to rule out a probably return of his team's ex-manager.
"He took the decision to leave and, of course, when Barca are looking for a new coach I am sure he will be one of the next board's candidates," he told ESPN.
"I think Pep said recently that he didn't see himself as the first team coach again, but maybe with the academy.
"He's very clear on the club's philosophy and style of play and to be able to bring him back home would be great for the club and for the players."
