The former Blues striker admits that an ex-Tottenham boss would be a good fit at the Etihad, but feels a promising young coach just gets the nod
If Pep Guardiola were to leave Manchester City in the summer of 2021, then RB Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann would be the perfect candidate to step in at the Etihad Stadium, says Shaun Goater.
The Blues are hoping that no movement will be made in their dugout for the foreseeable future.
They have, however, seen their current coach enter the final year of his current contract.
Guardiola, who is already taking in the longest reign of his distinguished coaching career to date with City, is famed for delivering success in relatively short bursts at any one club.
He has remained coy on his plans when it comes to a new deal in England, with the absence of his signature on fresh terms sparking inevitable speculation regarding possible successors.
Former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has been talked up as the favoured option for many, as the Argentine remains out of work, but Goater believes 33-year-old Nagelsmann would be a better fit to carry on the work of Guardiola.
The former City striker told Gentingbet: “I really like Nagelsmann, he’s a young manager who is brave, offensive in his game and that’s Pep’s style.
“The brand of football that City play is possession based with creativity, full-backs going forward, full-backs also being inverted and you don't see wide players or wingers, you see both. Working with those front three, that’s a brand of football that Pep has created.
“Nagelsmann is a sort of manager that is brave when I've seen his teams and I like that about him.
“He sort of says, ‘Right, we're coming to win this game’ and he does tactical moves that stretch the opposition and make them think differently, rather than playing a cagey game, so I really like some of the things I've seen his teams do.
“With Pochettino, we’ve seen how he operated at Tottenham and he was just starting to really build some good things as a good manager but he didn't quite win anything there, but again, played a great brand of football. So, both of them would be exciting managers.”
Pochettino has been without a club since severing ties with Spurs in November 2019, while Nagelsmann is tied to a contract at Leipzig until 2023.