Manchester City are still intent on keeping Pep Guardiola at the Etihad next season as Sporting coach Ruben Amorim agrees to join Manchester United.

City have appointed Sporting's Hugo Viana as their next sporting director, taking over from Txiki Begiristain at the end of the season. Amorim will start working for the Blues in February after the winter transfer window before starting full-time after the Club World Cup when Begiristain leaves.

The fact that Viana's main achievements in his role have come after taking the bold move to appoint Amorim at Sporting - and that Amorim had recently been courted for the Liverpool and West Ham jobs - added to the sense that the pair could link up again at the Etihad. Given the bond between Begiristain and Guardiola has been crucial to City's success, reuniting the pair that have done so well in Portugal seemed like a sensible option.

However, Amorim - who cited Jose Mourinho as his main influence when asked about Guardiola a few years ago - has a different style to the one currently used at the Etihad and other managers of interest to the Blues.

More importantly, City are interested in getting Guardiola to sign a new deal; the Catalan still hasn't decided what to do at the end of the season but hope has grown at the club this season that he may yet commit to a decade in charge.

Amorim was set to face off against Guardiola when City head to Sporting next week in the Champions League. However, the MEN has reported that the coach has agreed to join United following Erik Ten Hag's sacking on Monday.