Guardiola turned down the offer made by the Italian Football Federation and, according to reports, although not officially confirmed by him, the reason was family-related: he wanted to spend more time with his family rather than chase another lucrative job. Do I believe that? There is no reason not to. But we should not be naïve either. It was almost certainly not the only reason.
It was obvious that Guardiola had become exhausted by the life of a manager. The demands are relentless, and the signs of fatigue were there for everyone to see. You could see it on his face, and eventually it showed in Manchester City’s performances. Did they collapse? No. They remained among the best and continued to win trophies, but they were no longer that unstoppable City side that swept aside everything in English football.
After leaving City, he received the offer from Italy, a national team that is in the middle of a rebuilding process. There is absolutely no shame in aiming for the very best and falling short. Guardiola is the best manager of his generation, and perhaps the greatest of all time. Italy deserve credit for trying, but they also had to understand that bringing in the best manager on the market would require an exceptional offer.
Let’s not pretend that Guardiola would automatically turn down an offer from Spain or England, two national teams that are currently at the very top of international football. Italy, both now and for several years, simply have not been at that level.
Conclusion
Guardiola was clearly tired, that much seems obvious. But if the offer had come from another national team at the very top of world football, would he really have said no?