Pep Guardiola Reportedly Considers Replacing Arsene Wenger at Arsenal

Arsenal are the latest club to be touted as a possible destination for Pep Guardiola if he departs Bayern Munich, as he is reportedly a "huge fan of their style of football under Arsene Wenger."

So reports the Daily Mail's Charles Sale, who further noted "high-level sources have added Arsenal to the shortlist for Guardiola," while the Gunners' rivals Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea have also been linked with the coveted Spaniard.

Arsenal's tendency to play possession-based, attractive passing football in many ways make them the most logical fit for the former Barcelona manager—who famously employed the "tiki-taka" style of play at the Camp Nou—as they already have that basis from which he can work.

Sports journalist Alex Truica would welcome his appointment at the Emirates Stadium.

What would make hiring Guardiola difficult for Arsenal is the presence of Wenger. After 19 years in charge of the club, the Frenchman has earned the club's loyalty and will only step down at a time of his choosing, as Sale noted.

Rui Vieira/Associated Press

Journalist and Arsenal supporter Piers Morgan isn't confident the Gunners will hire him:

Indeed, since firing Wenger isn't a realistic possibility, Arsenal's only real chance of landing Guardiola is for the incumbent boss to see out his contract—which runs until the end of next season—and for the Spaniard to take a year-long sabbatical as he did between leaving Barca and joining Bayern.

As for the other English clubs set to clamour for his signature, it seems unlikely he'd join Chelsea given their current turmoil and chequered history of sacking managers, not to mention Sale's report that he isn't convinced by their current squad and believes a huge overhaul would be needed.

Tim Ireland/Associated Press

United are much more stable and would seem a fairly good fit, but according to football journalist Graham Hunter (h/t football writer Liam Canning), the Red Devils may be set to stick with Louis van Gaal:

"

Graham Hunter: “It seems clear from the briefing that Ed Woodward gave #mufc either don’t want Guardiola or they are not ready for him.”

— Liam (@OffsideLiam) December 18, 2015"

As for City, Sale described them as the favourites with former Barca colleagues Txiki Begiristain and Ferran Soriano currently operating behind the scenes at the Etihad Stadium.

Further, the Sky Blues seem less likely to stick with Manuel Pellegrini out of loyalty despite winning the Premier League title in 2014, as they have reportedly been targeting Guardiola for quite some time, per the Daily Mail's Jack Gaughan.

The Gunners have shown in the past they're prepared to stick with Wenger through thick and thin, though, so—unless it's by choice—the Frenchman isn't likely to be stepping down for Guardiola to come in.