Man City agree deal to bring in ex-Newcastle star to replace departing Txiki Begiristain
Manchester City have worked quickly to find a replacement for director of football Txiki Begiristain, who is leaving the club at the end of the season after working closely with Pep Guardiola
Manchester City have agreed a deal to hire Sporting Lisbon's Hugo Viana to replace Txiki Begiristain as director of football.
It emerged earlier this week that Begiristain will step down at the end of the 2024/25 season. The 60-year-old joined City in 2012 and was instrumental in bringing Pep Guardiola to the club as manager four years later, having played together and worked together at Barcelona.
Begiristain has been hugely influential at City over the past 12 years, helping turn them into Premier League juggernauts and one of the best sides in Europe. Under his watch, the club has won six of the past seven Premier League titles, while also winning the Champions League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup and Club World Cup.
His will be big shoes to fill, but City believe they have found the right man for the job. The Daily Mail reports that after a long search, City have agreed terms with Viana to succeed Begiristain next summer. City reportedly want Viana to join early next year so Begiristain can show him the ropes in a six-month handover period.
Viana has been Sporting director of football since 2018 and has helped oversee a hugely successful period in the club's history. The 41-year-old former midfielder, who played for Newcastle, Valencia and Braga, was the man who decided to take a gamble on manager Ruben Amorim.
Sporting shelled out £10million to poach Amorim from Braga and have been richly rewarded, winning two of the last four Portuguese titles. The club are currently top of the Primeira Liga on the back of eight straight wins this season and Viana's work has been recognised with a move to City, who are due to play Sporting in the Champions League on November 5.
Begiristain's departure is a significant moment for City given his close ties to Guardiola. The Catalan manager is out of contract at the end of the season and is yet to decide whether to stay put for longer.
It has been reported that Guardiola's future at City will not be influenced by his close ally's exit. But the 53-year-old has been at City for eight years now - longer than he spent at Barca or Bayern Munich - and questions will inevitably be asked in the coming months.
Guardiola has previously spoken to his admiration for Begiristain. "Txiki has been massively important at this club," he said. "He was here before I arrived and was stable in the club. He has been really important in these years and part of the enormous success we’ve had in terms of results and many things, he has been so important.
"I do ask him to take responsibility with the media, talk a bit, but he’s so shy. He wants to be behind the scenes so all the shots and the weapons are directed to me. But it was the same in Barcelona. He's a close friend and we’ve known each other 25 or 30 years. He’s calm and that balance helps us work perfectly together."
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