Man City welcome new boss to the Etihad ahead of restart!

In a move to shake things up before the June 17 Premier League restart, Manchester City have undertaken to name Spanish coach, Juan Manuel Lillo, as the new assistant manager to Pep Guardiola. Lillo steps into the shoes vacated by Mikel Arteta when he became Arsenal manager in December.

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It will not be the first time the two rub shoulders as Lillo, previously coached his compatriot at the end of the City manager’s playing career at Mexican side, Dorados. The 54-year-old spoke volumes of Guardiola and of the assignment ahead. “My relationship with Pep goes back many years and I am thrilled to be joining him as part of this exciting team,” said Lillo.

Juan Manuel Lillo se unirá a Pep Guardiola en el Manchester City
Manchester City have undertaken to name Spanish coach, Juan Manuel Lillo, as the new assistant manager to Pep Guardiola (Image: AFP).

Manchester City have enjoyed much success over recent seasons and played a brand of beautiful football we have come to expect from this club and its manager. It’s a pleasure to become a part of this group and I hope to make an important contribution to the club’s success going forwards,” he added.

Well-travelled and possessing a treasure-trove of experience, City will be Lillo’s 20th coaching stint in a sixth different country. He became La Liga’s youngest manager when he guided Salamanca, who now compete in the Segunda División B of Spanish football, to the top-flight at the age of 29 in 1995. The Spaniard also took up gigs with the likes of Real Sociedad and Real Oviedo and worked as an assistant to Jorge Sampaoli at Sevilla and Chile.

Guardiola brings in old boss Lillo as new assistant
It will not be the first time the two rub shoulders as Lillo previously coached Guardiola at Mexican side Dorados (Image: Sourced).

Most recently, Lillo guided Chinese Super One outfit, Qingdao Huanghai, to the domestic title en route to gaining promotion to the Super League, the country’s top-flight soccer league. His experience further comes in handy when considering his association with Andres Iniesta and David Villa, both of whom he worked with at Vissel Kobe in Japan, in addition to the ex-City midfielder Yaya Toure in China.