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Guardiola

Bayern Munich confirm Pep Guardiola appointment

Guardiola, 41, will replace Jupp Heynckes at the end of this season.

Updated 16.45

BAYERN MUNICH HAVE announced that Pep Guardiola will take over as the club’s head coach at the end of the season, replacing Jupp Heynckes.

The Bundesliga giants broke the news this afternoon, confirming that the former Barcelona manager will end his self-imposed sabbatical from football to take up the post at the beginning of July.

Guardiola, 41, has agreed an initial three-year deal which will see him take charge at the Allianz Arena until June 2016. Heynckes, who returned to Bayern in 2011  for a third term as coach, announced that he would not be extending his contract beyond the end of the season.

Bayern chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said: “[Guardiola] is one of the most successful trainers in the world and we are sure that not only Bayern Munich but the whole of German football will benefit from what he brings.”

The appointment ends the fevered speculation which has surrounded Guardiola’s next move since he left a hugely successful Barcelona side and stepped back from football in the summer of 2012.

In his four seasons at the Camp Nou, Guardiola won 14 trophies including three La Liga titles and two UEFA Champions Leagues, making him the most successful manager in club history and establishing the Catalan giants as a benchmark for footballing brilliance. After winning his second La Liga-Champions League double in 2010/2011, he was named FIFA World Coach of the Year.

As recently as yesterday, Guardiola dropped broad hints that he would like to manage in the Premier League in the future, describing English football as a “unique” experience. Instead he will now face the challenge of bringing top honours back to one of Europe’s superpowers.  Bayern last won the Champions League in 2001, their fourth success in the competition, but have missed out twice in recent years losing in the final to Inter Milan in 2010 and on penalties against Chelsea last season.

Bayern’s last domestic title came in 2010 but they currently have a nine-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga as Heynckes bids to go out on a high by ending Borussia Dortmund’s drive for three in a row.

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