Pep Guardiola tipped Erik ten Hag to replace him at Man City but could ruin treble dream instead

It will be the battle of the bald at Wembley when Pep Guardiola meets Erik ten Hag on Saturday afternoon.

Manchester United and Manchester City meet in the FA Cup final, with the former set to add another trophy to their season’s haul and ruin their rival’s treble dream in the process.

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United won the Carabao Cup in Ten Hag’s first season as manager, while Pep Guardiola finished the Premier League and wants the FA Cup and Champions League.

Only United have managed that in the Premier League, memorably doing so in 1999. City, however, have been rolling sides in recent months and Guardiola could match Sir Alex Ferguson if he wins all three.

Standing in his way is a man he once tipped to succeed him at the Etihad.

The two coaches worked together at Bayern Munich where Guardiola was head coach and Ten Hag was in charge of the reserve team.

The pair jostled for ideas and coaching methods for two years between 2013 and 2015 and Ten Hag left an impression on Guardiola.

Just weeks before Ten Hag is confirmed as United’s next boss in 2022, Guardiola has been asked if the Dutchman can succeed him on the other side of town.

“Are you asking me if Erik Ten Hag might be here?” Certainly.

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“Many could be here and I think he could be one of them. For the way he approaches the game, definitely, definitely. I’m going to say (director of football) Txiki (Begiristain) now!

It was no surprise to see Guardiola check on how Bayern’s B team was doing during his time in Bavaria and was often said to have been blown away by Ten Hag’s methods.

Eventually he became a full-fledged coach and took over at Utrecht in 2015 before landing the job at Ajax two years later, where his famous side reached the Champions League semi-finals in 2019.

Matthijs de Ligt, Hakim Ziyech and Frenkie de Jong all picked up mega moves from their European campaigns while Ten Hag became one of the most coveted managers in the world.

Speaking about their time at Bayern, Guardiola said: “We spoke quite regularly and he’s just an amazing person and human being.

“I was surprised at how humble he was.

“For his qualities, just take a look at his Ajax team in recent years.

“It’s a joy to watch and in many games, not just the year they got to the Champions League semi-finals – but with small details they would have reached that final.

“The relationship we had was good, especially when we talked about football and the second team, and with the players he was exceptional.”

Once colleagues, now rivals – the two will battle for the FA Cup in their respective red and blue corners on Saturday.

Man City vs Man United in the 2023 FA Cup Final is live on talkSPORT on Saturday June 3 from 3pm