As Pep Guardiola prepares to announce that he is leaving Manchester City after 10 years at the club, attention will inevitably to turn to what comes next. Will he take on a new project club? Or challenge himself with succeeding in international football? Or will he take another break from the game?The range of options open to him feels limitless, so we asked eight of our writers what they would like to see Guardiola do next…Take on a mid-level Serie A clubThere has always been this thing where people want to see him take a mid-table team and prove he can win something without elite-level players. I would love to see him to take over at someone like — just plucking a team at random here — Udinese or Fiorentina. It’s not realistic (because why would any coach take a job “beneath” his true level just to satisfy the curiosity of others?), but it would be fun.Do I think he would win the Serie A title with those teams? No, I don’t. But I have little doubt he would bring individual and collective improvement on a huge scale because, whether or not people like to acknowledge it, that is what he does. Could he do, for example, what Andoni Iraola has done at Bournemouth or Sebastian Hoeness has done at Stuttgart or Cesc Fabregas has done at Como? Yes, he is one of the few coaches in the world who could.I have no interest in seeing Guardiola take a national team job. I can see why it might appeal to him — so much less stress for 23 months out of every 24 — but international management is an exercise in pragmatism. It wouldn’t get the best out of him at all.Oliver KayCome to the U.S.Pep in America has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? It could be an interesting docuseries that chronicles the football legend’s take on American pop culture. Imagine Guardiola line dancing in Nashville or playing dominoes in Washington Heights. Of course, he lived in New York City with his family during his one-year sabbatical in 2012, so we can assume that he is intrigued by the bright lights of a major U.S. city.If Guardiola were to relocate stateside, his options would be numerous. U.S. men’s national team supporters would gladly hand him a blank check to coach the senior side after the 2026 World Cup. The job would be far less demanding than what he has become accustomed to in the Premier League and previously during his exceptional four-year run with Barcelona.Pep Guardiola at the U.S. Open last year (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)Perhaps coaching Lionel Messi for one final season with Inter Miami would appeal to him. Or a Jurgen Klopp-like role with City Football Group’s New York City FC. Personally, I feel that American soccer culture would bore Guardiola. He needs the juice of a high-stakes competition. He thrives under pressure. Complacency is his kryptonite. But I’d watch that docuseries.Felipe CardenasBack to Barcelona?After such a long time at City, it seems only right that Guardiola’s next step is another sabbatical, visiting some more art museums and getting to see Elton John live again.After that… despite all his success in Munich and Manchester, Barcelona is and always will be Guardiola’s club.Pep Guardiola and Lionel Messi in their Barcelona days (LLUIS GENE/AFP via Getty Images)There’s no vacancy at Barca at the moment, with Hansi Flick having just extended his contract. It’s also difficult to see Guardiola working again for current Barca president Joan Laporta.But few saw Jose Mourinho returning to Real Madrid, and it’s about to happen. Never say never in football, and Pep back at the Camp Nou would be just as tremendous a return.Dermot CorriganRefresh his galaxy brainTake a sabbatical. Guardiola’s year in New York strolling around the East Village and dining with chess grandmasters not only sounded like the type of leisurely existence we’d all quite like to live, but also the sort of luxury few consumed by this sport afford themselves.Guardiola is more consumed by football than most, so another year in hibernation may not appeal, but after a decade of dominating English football, not to mention his three years in Munich before Manchester, it would be fascinating to see what new tactical paradigm his galaxy brain has come up with when it’s refreshed and recharged.Mark CritchleySave AjaxIt feels like my colleagues want Guardiola to either 1) take a break or 2) take on a test outside the European super-heavyweights.I would like to present a third option, one that could bring his relationship with Johan Cruyff and the Total Football coaching principles full circle.What would happen if Pep Guardiola attempted to restore Ajax to the pinnacle of European football?Ajax are in a relatively low period at the moment. They haven’t won the league title since 2021-22 and have been wracked by institutional dysfunction, wasteful financial spending and disagreements over playing style and the academy. They’re not the strongest or smartest operators in the Netherlands anymore and are in need of a total system reboot.So I would present a three-pronged challenge for Guardiola. Reinvigorate Ajax to the point where they can regularly compete in the Champions League knockout rounds. Do so in a way that helps reboot some of the Netherlands’ traditional, but creaking, football principles. Try to win trophies with Ajax academy players who could one day help power the Dutch national team to their first-ever World Cup triumph.It’s more “Football Manager dream save” than a real-life motivation. But maybe Guardiola fancies slaying a windmill or two.Carl AnkaAnything he wantsIf Pep Guardiola wanted to join Oasis, he could. Not much is really off limits to him. He could throw himself into punditry (imagine that bidding battle) or politics or fashion. He could work on his golf game every single day. He could be the star of a Stanley Tucci-meets-Anthony-Bourdain documentary, sampling the best food, drink and culture the world has to offer.He could walk the runway at any fashion week of his choice or launch his own collection. He could become a lecturer in football sciences at a leading university. He could finally write that book.Guardiola is a deep thinker with a creative, passionate soul. Why limit yourself to football, Pep? You have already left an indelible mark on it. Just because you are really good at something doesn’t mean you have to do it forever.Who needs to win another trophy when you can sit in a cafe so long that morning espressos become afternoon aperitifs, and the barista has your order on the go before you have even said hello? That a slow day eventually becomes a still and perfect evening by the coast. Oh wait, Italy really is calling him.Caoimhe O’Neill Manage EnglandI don’t have much desire to see him take over another big club and turn them into a juggernaut. Like Oli, I’d prefer to see him take on a more stripped-back challenge. Prove that he can take average players and make them really good rather than take the really good and make them great.International football fits the bill in that regard. He seems addicted to the relentless buzz of top-level club football, so it would be an adjustment, but it would be compelling.Pep Guardiola has developed a deep affection for English football (Glyn Kirk / AFP via Getty Images)Can he disprove the theory that high-brow football can’t be played by a group of players who only meet up every few months? I’d like to see him try.Few nations that appear realistic are in need of a hero. Carlo Ancelotti has committed to Brazil through to the 2030 World Cup and, given that Guardiola’s Catalan roots make Spain difficult, only England and Italy remain as major countries who have a place in his heart and are in need of something special.His love of the English football pyramid is no secret. Could he be the man to end the long wait for a second World Cup trophy? That is surely a task that would excite him.Jordan CampbellRelax… then Serie A, PSG, England or BrazilFirst and foremost, Pep Guardiola should rest.His 10 years at Manchester City have been dominant and defining, but they also must have been mentally exhausting, particularly for an obsessive personality like Guardiola, whose success is built on meticulous preparation and constant tactical reinvention to keep his City side on top.After that, it is a tough one to pitch. His attachment to both City and Barcelona means he is unlikely to manage elsewhere in England and Spain, while it feels as if his work in Germany is also done. Perhaps there is a club in Italy — either team in Milan, Napoli, Juventus — who might take his fancy, or maybe Paris Saint-Germain will offer him similar resources to build another super team.His attention to detail and intensity seem unsuited to international football, games too infrequent for him to really make a mark. But if he is looking to wind down his managerial career, a future World Cup run with England or Brazil could be an exciting way for him to sign off.Really, he should kick back and relax, and not even think about what is to come next. But knowing Guardiola’s restless mind, that may be easier said than done.Thom Harris