Man City told exactly who they must appoint if Pep Guardiola leaves this summer

Man City have been told Vincent Kompany is the perfect man to replace Pep Guardiola should he leave the club this summer.

Speculation about the Spanish head coach‘s future has ramped up in recent days, despite them being in the midst of a Premier League title fight with Arsenal.

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As such, talkSPORT understands City chiefs have asked Guardiola to give them a steer on what his decision could be come the end of the season.

The 55-year-old has a contract until the summer of 2027, but uncertainty is beginning to impact the club’s future planning.

Man City have already got several transfer targets on their radar, however, some are believed to be factoring Guardiola’s future into their decision-making.

Meanwhile, the club are also insisting they are calm about the situation and have plans in place for all eventualities.

City legend and talkSPORT pundit Stuart Pearce explained that Guardiola has every right to take his time over his future, but insisted the club should do all they can to secure his services for a longer spell.

He also believes there is a chance the club could struggle should Guardiola opt to quit the Etihad Stadium, as other great teams have done when they have lost their figureheads.

Asked about the uncertainty around Guardiola’s future, Premier League legend Ray Parlour agreed with Pearce.

He told talkSPORT: “He’s weighing up all the situations. Whether he wants to try and go out on a high, try and have one more season and say ‘Look I’m gonna really push for that Premier League again or Champions League’ .

“He has earned the right. I can totally understand what Stuart’s saying. But also the club do need to know they need to put things in place because it is a massive loss.

“You know what Pep Guardiola‘s done for that club. Look, we can argue that he spent so much money and he’s bought the best players in but he still made players better. He still got them over the line. He’s still been the most successful manager ever for Manchester City.

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“It’d be a nightmare day when he does leave because you know what he brings to the table.

“He’s always up. They’re always competing. But obviously the club have to look at that.

“It’s a little bit like Sir Alex Ferguson when he was at Manchester United. He knew when the right time was to leave and he made sure he went out on a high, winning the Premier League. He knew that the team was ageing a little bit. So he made the right decision when he wanted to leave and I think Pep’s going to be in that situation as well.”

Given options on who could replace Guardiola, Parlour was quick to identify the prime candidate.

He said: “Straight away, I say Vincent Kompany. Straight away. Just because he knows the club very well. He knows the Manchester people. He knows everything about the club. The fans respect him.

“I think that if he was to go to any club it would only be Man City, if I’m being honest, that would be his club.

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“He was there for many many years. He knows the passion. He knows everything about the football club.

“So, for me, that would be the perfect scenario for Man City fans.

“He went to Burnley. They tried to play out from the back. He didn’t have the right players and it didn’t work out for him.

“But he’s gone to Bayern Munich and they’ve been superb because they’ve got better players and he knows they can deal with that, a little bit like Man City.

“So, I’m sure we wouldn’t have any problem walking into Man City, but there’s lots of options out there, we know.

“But I think he would be perfect for it.”