Alex Ferguson wanted Pep Guardiola at Manchester United

The former Manchester United manager reveals that he tried to convince Guardiola to succeed him.

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Alex Ferguson wanted Pep Guardiola at Manchester United

10.10.26 12:30 English Premier League

Manchester United

Tottenham

Sir Alex Ferguson would have liked to see Pep Guardiola take charge of Manchester United after his departure from the club. In his book Games of My Life, the former Red Devils manager notably recounts a dinner arranged with the Spanish coach in 2012, during which he reportedly tried to convince him to continue his career at Old Trafford.

Ferguson had targeted Guardiola as his successor

Sir Alex Ferguson managed Manchester United for many years and left his position in 2013. Under his leadership, the Manchester club notably won 13 English league titles and two Champions League trophies. A year before his departure, Ferguson had already begun thinking about his succession. Among the managers he wanted to see take over from him was Pep Guardiola, who was then in charge of FC Barcelona.

Sir Alex Ferguson on trying to convince Pep Guardiola to manage #mufc: "Over the past ten years, I have often wondered what might have happened if the dinner I had with Pep in New York in 2012 had taken place a couple of months earlier. "At the time, I hadn't decided for certain that I was going to retire. And Pep was convinced that, after achieving huge success in just four years in La Liga with a Continental treble as well as a League and Champions League double, he wanted to try life in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich. "If I could rewind time, we would have dined some months earlier, I would have poured plenty of Tignanello [Italian wine], and I would have tried my hardest to convince him that his future lay in Manchester. Unfortunately for us, it did. Enough said..."
— utdreport (@utdreport) October 8, 2026

Ferguson says he shared a dinner with the Catalan coach in 2012. He was hoping to convince him that his future should be in Manchester:

If I could turn back time, we would have had dinner a few months earlier. I had served plenty of Tignanello and done everything I could to convince him that his future was in Manchester.

Guardiola ultimately chose Bayern Munich

At that time, Guardiola had just enjoyed an exceptional period with FC Barcelona. After four years marked by numerous successes in Spain, the manager wanted to take on a new challenge. According to Ferguson, Guardiola had not yet completely made up his mind, but was ultimately won over by the idea of discovering the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich:

At that time, I had not yet fully decided to retire. And Pep was convinced that, after achieving huge success in La Liga in just four years, including a continental treble as well as a league and Champions League double, he wanted to experience life in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich.

Guardiola then left Bayern Munich to move to Manchester in 2016. But rather than Manchester United, he chose the major rival, Manchester City.