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Italy targets Guardiola/Ancelotti
Italy’s football federation (FIGC) has held talks with Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti about taking over the crisis-hit Italy national team after the Azzurri failed for a third straight time to qualify for the World Cup.
“Italy has grand ambitions to revive its national team”
Paolo Maldini, named FIGC technical director at the start of the month, attended a meeting with Serie A clubs on Thursday alongside new FIGC president Giovanni Malagò and special advisor Leonardo, and he said, "Honestly, today we can’t give news about what’s happening. You’ve identified one of our targets."
Maldini added, "We can’t hide that we also talked with Carlo Ancelotti before talking with Pep," describing the approach as starting with "the best in the world" to assess their availability.
The Guardian reported that the FIGC hopes to announce the new Italy coach within the week, with Italy still reeling after failing to qualify for a third straight World Cup.
The Times of India said the federation is looking to rebuild after another disappointing qualifying campaign and that Maldini confirmed Guardiola is among the candidates while the process remains ongoing.
Maldini urges no rush
Maldini framed the search as urgent but not hasty after a World Cup cycle that led to resignations, with the Guardian noting that Italy missed out on a third straight World Cup after a playoff loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina in March.
In the same context, Maldini told reporters, "The best thing would be to announce the new coach this week, but even more to wait for the person we really want," while also saying, "So there’s urgency, but not so much inside us."
The New York Times reported that Maldini said the recruitment strategy was to start by targeting the world’s best coaches and that the discussions were in the process of clarifying the pair’s availability.
The New York Times also quoted Maldini saying, "Guardiola? We can’t confirm anything yet — you’ve identified one of our targets, but we’ve also spoken with Ancelotti," tying the public messaging to the ongoing talks.
Football Italia added that Maldini and Leonardo met with the Lega Serie A and warned the press not to ask the name of the new Italy coach, while Leonardo said the federation has "three worlds, so it’s the Nazionale, the youth teams, and the academies."
Contracts and next steps
Ancelotti’s availability is complicated by his Brazil contract, with the Guardian reporting that he signed a contract extension with Brazil in May through to the 2030 World Cup.
“- Published Italy approached Carlo Ancelotti to become their national team manager before holding talks with Pep Guardiola”
The New York Times said Ancelotti has been Brazil’s manager since May 2025 and that he led them to the round of 16 at the 2026 World Cup, where they were eliminated by Norway.
Guardiola, meanwhile, left Manchester City at the end of the 2025-26 campaign after 10 seasons, and the New York Times noted he won six Premier League titles, three FA Cups, five Carabao Cups and the Champions League in 2023.
The Times of India reported that Maldini and Leonardo spent three days in Barcelona meeting Guardiola to discuss the Italy job, and it quoted Maldini saying, "The best thing would be to announce the new coach this week, but even more to wait for the person we really want."
The New York Times added that after Italy failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, losing to Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties in the European play-offs, Gattuso and FIGC president Gabriele Gravina both left their positions, leaving the federation to push the renewal forward.
