Pep Guardiola touted as Mauricio Pochettino’s replacement as USMNT boss nears Man Utd move

U.S. Men’s National Team boss Mauricio Pochettino appears to be nearing a return to Premier League management , with Manchester United expected to fire Michael Carrick after a dismal start to the season. With United in 18th after 10 games and already out of the EFL Cup, Carrick has come under increasing scrutiny of late, leading to a reported meeting in Monaco on Wednesday involving the team’s hierarchy, where it is expected they will agree to let the legendary midfielder go. While Eddie Howe, Unai Emery, and Julian Nagelsmann have all been tipped to replace Carrick in the seemingly cursed United hot seat, former Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea boss Pochettino has recently emerged as the frontrunner. As of Wednesday, talks between U.S. Soccer and United are already said to have kicked off, according to The Mirror . Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac address Wrexham executive’s abrupt exit Tottenham Hotspur legend calls for Arsenal's Ben White to be barred from England call-ups Should Pochettino cut short his recently penned four-year deal with the USMNT, it has been reported by The Athletic that U.S Soccer’s attention could turn to former City boss, Pep Guardiola. Having stepped away from the Etihad after 10 years in charge this past summer, Guardiola is said to have “shown little recent interest in an imminent return to management.” That being said, comments made by the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss in 2024 regarding the USMNT suggest that perhaps he could be tempted by the project. “The USA is fascinating to try to build a project for many years and being able to get the national team to the next step,” he said, via ESPN . “The potential with the USA is there for the amount of people and sports and so on.” Currently ranked 16th in the world by FIFA, the USMNT has several star players to work with, including Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, and Malik Tillman. What’s more, there is also an extremely promising young generation of talent recently introduced to the setup by Pochettino, with future City star Cavan Sullivan arguably the headliner. Despite this, U.S. Soccer executives, including President Cindy Parlow Cone, Chief Executive Officer and Secretary General JT Batson, and Chief Operating Officer Dan Helfrich, would have a major task on their hands in sweet talking Guardiola out of his long-awaited break. To listen to the latest episode of 'All Out Soccer' - CLICK HERE “I know that after this period with City I'm going to stop, that's for sure, it's decided, more than decided,” he told GQ in July 2025. “I don't know how long I'll stop, a year, two years, three years, five, ten, fifteen, I don't know. But I am going to quit after this period with City, because I need to stop and focus on myself, on my body, on… In Catalan, it's called badar. Badar, badar, badar… “I want to do this, simply stop and watch the cows go by when the train passes. My grandfather used to say, ‘You look at me the way cows watch the train go by.’ Well, that's it, you have to stop and watch. “And then life… I never thought I would coach, go to Germany to coach, to England, and be the coach of Barcelona, or that I would play for Barcelona. We think we're in control, but no, something's bound to happen that'll put something in front of me and I'll say: oh, do I want to do this or not? And if not, well, I'll figure it out. And I think my plan now is this: to stop, stop... And then we'll see.”