Written by Megan Taylor, sports reporter covering international sports since 2020
Pep Guardiola is a leading candidate to become Italy head coach after the Italian Football Federation prepared financial exceptions for a possible appointment. President Giovanni Malagò confirmed the interest on Wednesday after Italy missed a third consecutive World Cup.
Pep Guardiola is available after a 10-year Manchester City reign that produced six Premier League titles and the UEFA Champions League. Roberto Mancini and Andrea Pirlo are also linked with the vacancy.
Italy's coaching search follows the World Cup, while attention is already shifting towards Morocco's cost and legacy test before the 2030 tournament.
Italian Federation Opens Door to Pep Guardiola
"[Financial] exceptions have been made, exceptions that for example may concern the name that is so overbearing in these hours: Pep Guardiola," Giovanni Malagò said. "Exceptions for obvious reasons that I am not here to explain, but it is not certain that this thing will go through."
The comments show Italy may move beyond its usual financial limits, although no agreement exists. The federation's official statement confirms Gennaro Gattuso left by mutual consent.
Italy Seeks Wider Football Reset
Giovanni Malagò denied that Pep Guardiola, Roberto Mancini and Andrea Pirlo were the only candidates. "Absolutely not. We think about a certain profile and certainly these names fall into that category."
Pep Guardiola's positional approach offers tactical direction, but international football provides less training time than club management. The appointment would begin a wider repair of Italy's youth system.
Italy face Belgium in the UEFA Nations League on September 25, according to the official UEFA fixture. The Italian Football Federation has little time to complete its search.