Pep Guardiola's stance on sacrificing £18m-a-year Manchester City job to take England role

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has been approached over the England job, though taking on such a role would mean a significant pay cut for the sought-after Spaniard

Pep Guardiola is said to be willing to take a significant salary drop to move into international management - when the time is right.

The Manchester City manager, 53, is one of a number of top coaches being considered for the England vacancy with his future at the Etihad unclear. He has refused to confirm his plans beyond the end of the current season, when his contract expires.

It emerged on Monday that The Football Association HAVE sounded Guardiola out over the national team role, which is currently held by interim boss Lee Carsley.

And while it remains to be seen if he is seriously interested in the job, Guardiola does have an appetite to manage a national team at some point in his career and is believed to have received three approaches from different nations in recent months..

A significant drop in money wouldn't necessarily put him off, either, it has been claimed. The Telegraph outline that Guardiola accepts coaching a national team would mean taking a pay cut given such a role would not command figures anywhere near what he is currently earning at Manchester City or would be offered by another top club.

It's understood that the Spaniard's lucrative contract at City - who are desperate to persuade him to sign another extension - sees him earn around £18million-a-year.

That's a huge increase on the £2.5m salary that former England boss Gareth Southgate was earning before he stood down from his role in July following defeat in the Euro 2024 final.

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There are others in the frame for the England job: Carsley has now refused to rule himself out of contention for the job, although he is expected to return to his previous role as head coach of the Under-21s, while reports in Germany claim Thomas Tuchel is in talks.

Guardiola himself tried to play down speculation over his future during an appearance on Italian TV show Che Tempo Che Fa during the international break where he insisted he had not yet decided whether to stay on at City or not.

He said: “Leaving City? It’s not true, I haven’t decided yet. And it is not even true that I will be the next England coach. If I had decided I would say it … I don’t know either, anything can happen.”

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