Manchester City are reportedly looking to bring Juanma Lillo back to the club as their assistant manager this summer.
Pep Guardiola recently saw one member of his coaching staff, Enzo Maresca, leave the club to become the new manager of Leicester City.
With that in mind, the Citizens have already identified their ideal replacement for the Italian, with someone who they are already rather familiar with.
City aiming to bring Lillo back
According to a recent report from The Athletic City are hopeful of striking a deal to bring Lillo, who initially joined the club in 2020, back to the club after he left their coaching staff in 2022 to join Qatari side Al Sadd as their manager.
The report also adds that the 57–year-old “is still under contract for another year and it is believed that he has a clause in his contract that must be triggered in order for him to leave.”
In addition to that, it is also claimed that Lillo “struck up close relationships with several City players during his initial two-year spell in Manchester, and has a strong bond with Guardiola that goes back to the Catalan’s playing days,” as well as keeping close with the City boss and several players at the club.
During his spell with the Manchester club, he helped them win the Premier League title and the Carabao Cup, showing how familiar he is when it comes to being successful with them.
Since becoming the manager of Al Sadd, the Spaniard has overlooked 30 games in total, winning 20, drawing two and losing eight, which highlights how capable he is of being the main man in charge as well as being a useful assistant.
With Guardiola and City now apparently looking to bring Lillo back to the Etihad Stadium, this also showcases how highly thought of he is by the current coaching staff at the club and why we feel it would be a smart move to reappoint him as Maresca’s replacement.
