It’s fair to say Barcelona have emerged as one of football’s greatest teams in recent years, sweeping all those in before them and picking up 14 trophies in the process.
Much of this is down to Pep Guardiola. Having taken over in 2008 as successor to the departing Frank Rijkaard, the former Barca midfielder has firmly established the Blaugrana at the summit of the game.
Following his resignation upon the culmination of the 2011/12 season, much was made of where his next destination in the game would be. A weary eyed Pep insisted he was prepared to take a year-long sabbatical in order to improve every aspect of his coaching.
Nevertheless, the rumours surrounding his next job in football failed to halt and despite being linked with Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, it is AC Milan that appear to be leading the race for the Spaniard.
Nevertheless, any move to the San Siro for Pep would surely end in disaster. The Italian capital side are currently 11th in Serie A, just six points above the relegation zone and 13 adrift of fierce rivals Inter.
Unsurprisingly, it has seen Massimiliano Allegri come under copious amounts of pressure, with constant speculation suggesting his job is on the line. The sales of key members Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva haven’t helped matters, but it is this selling behaviour of the club that is the reason why Guardiola would likely swerve any offer to manage Milan.
The club are currently undergoing a transitional period, but are unlikely to re-establish themselves as a dominant European force any time soon. Guardiola may not have seen eye-to-eye with Ibrahimovic during the latter’s time with Barcelona, but he is the type of player that would’ve led the front-line admirably during their current time of need.
The lack of investment on top of that is likely to hinder Milan further and it is this reason why Guardiola would be expected to turn down the managerial role at the San Siro, should it be offered to him.