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Manchester City are interested in two of the most high-profile coaches in Europe, with current boss Manuel Pellegrini fighting to save his job.
The Chilean manager suffered a terrible week with a poor defeat to Barcelona in the first-leg of the Champions League last-16 on Tuesday followed by a crucial defeat to Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.
After that defeat at the hands of the Reds, which left City five points behind Premier League leaders Chelsea having played a game more, Pellegrini's team had to watch their rivals lift the Capital One Cup.
Pellegrini has a three-year contract at City and while he is popular, the hierarchy are not happy at his lack of progress, especially in Europe. Last season City were dumped out of Europe at the last-16 stage and seem to be heading for the same fate this year, after struggling through the group stages.
There is also concern at the manner of the performances against Barcelona and Liverpool. Against the Catalans, Pellegrini tactics left City far too exposed, while at Anfield, Brendan Rodgers' team looked far more motivated and fresh, despite playing extra-time against Besiktas on Thursday night.
If City fail to impress against Barcelona and fail to win the league he will not remain in the job next season.
Liverpool v Manchester City - player ratings
There are conflicting reports in the Daily Telegraph and Guardian this morning with the former linking Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti with the job and the latter Bayern Munich's Pep Guardiola. The two papers also say that Under-21 coach Patrick Vieira and even Rafa Benitez are being considered.
Guardiola has just 18 months left to run on his contract in Germany and has previously admitted he sees "no value" in long-term deals. Despite building one of the most dominant teams in history at Barcelona, the Spaniard only stayed in charge at Camp Nou for four years before leaving for a new challenge.
Ancelotti is two years into a three-year deal at the Bernabeu but despite winning 'La Decima' last May and leading Los Blancos to the top of Spanish table this season, the Italian has not yet been approached over a new deal by club president Florentino Perez.
Of course, City wanting these two and actually getting them are entirely different matters; the pair represent their ideal candidates.
