Pep Guardiola opens door to Manchester United and Arsenal by revealing he will wait for job in England

Pep Guardiola has opened the door to moves to Manchester United and Arsenal, suggesting he could wait two years until the right job in the Premier League comes along. The former Barcelona coach is currently the most sought-after manager in world football after announcing his plans to leave Bayern Munich when his contract expires at the end of the season.

The 44-year-old later explained the reason he did not extend his stay at the Allianz Arena was because he wants to manage the Premier League. Guardiola has long been linked with taking over at Manchester City, where he would be reunited with former Barcelona colleagues in City's director of football, Txiki Begiristain, and their chief executive, Ferran Soriano. Kicker reported in the aftermath of his announcement there is already an agreement between the Spaniard and the Premier League side.

Chelsea have also been linked with Guardiola, with the view of taking over from Guus Hiddink when the Dutchman's short-term stay at the club expires at the end of the season.

Manchester United, meanwhile, would appear to be out of the race after the Daily Mail reported the club's hierarchy are happy for current boss Louis van Gaal to see out the remaining 18 months of his contract. Similarly, Arsene Wenger has 18 months remaining on his current deal.

But Guardiola has alerted all four clubs once again, insisting he may choose to take a break from the game again before deciding on his next destination.

"When I sign a contract I will announce it immediately," Guardiola said. "Maybe it will be two years until I coach a team in England. I am very happy about my experience in Munich. I am working until my last second here.

"After that I will go home and wait to see if it is possible to move to England or not. If it is not, then I won't."

Guardiola recently apologised to Premier League managers after comments about his next job saw the futures of Van Gaal and Manuel Pellegrini thrown under fresh scrutiny.

"I'm sorry," he said, as quoted by AS. "Normally, throughout my career – both as a player and as a coach, I have shown great respect to my fellow colleagues. It wasn't my intention [to cause any upset]."