‘When I will be 72 years old and come to Italy to coach, I’ll ask Roberto Baggio to be my assistant,’ says Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.
Guardiola and Baggio played together at Brescia and the Manchester City boss spoke about his time with the Italian legend in an interview with Il Corriere dello Sport.
“Johan Cruijff always spoke highly of Baggio. He wanted to see him in a technical league such as La Liga and he wondered whether he would adapt to Spanish football,” Guardiola said.
‘When I will be 72 years old and come to Italy to coach, I’ll ask Roberto Baggio to be my assistant,’ says Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.
Guardiola and Baggio played together at Brescia and the Manchester City boss spoke about his time with the Italian legend in an interview with Il Corriere dello Sport.
“Johan Cruijff always spoke highly of Baggio. He wanted to see him in a technical league such as La Liga and he wondered whether he would adapt to Spanish football,” Guardiola said.
“Baggio could have played everywhere, but in those years, it was impossible to convince him to leave Serie A. The best players were in Italy, and everyone wanted to play there.
“I wanted to play abroad, and when Brescia directors Mauro Pederzoli and Gianluca Nanni came to meet me in Barcelona, it didn’t take long for me to accept. They spoke to me about Baggio, Toni, Calori, Petruzzi and the twins Filippini. I thought: ‘If Baggio is there, it means they want to do things seriously.’ And I was right.
“Baggio was the best footballer and treated everybody in the same way, from the President to the warehouse workers.”
Baggio left the world of football and currently lives in the countryside with his family now.
“We are living in a society where everybody expects to receive recognition from people who are far away from us, rather than love from the ones who are close.
“Baggio is the opposite, he prefers the love of his relatives than to take centre stage. All us humans live for what happens outside, forgetting about ourselves. He prefers his interior life, his family, Buddhism and enjoying little things.
“When I’ll be 72 years old and come to Italy to coach, I’ll ask him to become my assistant. I’ll try to bring him back into the world of football. But you can’t convince Baggio, he decides.”