Vincent Kompany Leads Candidates To Succeed Pep Guardiola, Sources Say

Manchester City have identified Vincent Kompany as the front-runner to take the managerial reins at the Etihad should Pep Guardiola step away after the 2026-27 campaign, sources have told ESPN.

The 38-year-old Belgian, who captained City during the club’s first wave of Premier League triumphs, is currently in charge of Bayern Munich and has impressed the English champions’ hierarchy with his early success in Germany. Those enduring relationships, forged during Kompany’s 11-year playing stint in Manchester, give him a decisive edge in what sources describe as “active succession planning” at the Premier League giants.

Guardiola, 55, will celebrate a decade in the City dugout this summer, yet his refusal to outline his long-term intentions has intensified speculation that the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich strategist could walk away when his present deal expires at the close of next season. While Guardiola has repeatedly extended when exit rumours swirled, the club’s methodical approach to transitions has accelerated behind the scenes.

Kompany’s candidacy is bolstered by a résumé that blends emotional ties with elite-level performance: he skippered City’s transformative title-winning sides, retains close contact with senior decision-makers, and has steered Bayern to victories since replacing Thomas Tuchel last summer. After a bruising relegation battle with Burnley, the Belgian’s rebound in Munich has demonstrated his capacity to handle superstar dressing rooms and the relentless pressure of trophy expectations.

City’s brain trust, renowned for plotting infrastructure and personnel moves years in advance, is not relying on a single option. Sources confirmed that Xabi Alonso, whose Bayer Leverkusen romp to an unbeaten Bundesliga crown drew admiring glances across Europe, remains firmly on the radar. How Alonso’s brief tenure at Real Madrid altered City’s internal assessment is unclear, yet his tactical sophistication and midfield pedigree keep him in contention.

Paris Saint-Germain boss Luis Enrique, a Champions League winner with Barcelona, is admired for his ability to mesh headline talents into a cohesive unit, a prerequisite for a squad accustomed to competing on multiple fronts. Former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, who spent two seasons inside City’s analysis department and helped implement Guardiola’s positional principles, offers institutional memory despite his turbulent Stamford Bridge spell.

Club officials declined to comment publicly on future managerial appointments, yet the contours of a succession race are unmistakable. Guardiola’s latest evasive answers—he typically defers long-term questions to focus on the next match—have only fuelled the belief that the Catalan could conclude his English odyssey in 2027, leaving a vacancy City hope to fill with one of their own.

Vincent Kompany, once the on-field embodiment of City’s rise, now looms as the preferred choice to guard the dynasty Guardiola built.