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Manchester City have confirmed the appointment of Hugo Viana as their new director of football.
Viana replaces Txiki Begiristain after it was announced the Spaniard would step down at the end of the 2024-25 season.
“Viana will begin his full-time role in the summer of 2025, but will collaborate with Txiki in the preceding months to ensure a smooth transition,” a City statement said.
“We look forward to paying tribute to Txiki’s outstanding contribution to Manchester City at the end of the season.”
Viana spent time at Sporting CP, Newcastle United and Valencia as a player and won 29 caps for Portugal between 2001 and 2012.
He was appointed as Sporting’s director of football in 2018 and helped the club win the Portuguese title in 2021 and 2024 despite strong competition from Benfica and FC Porto.
He’s credited with bringing in Ruben Amorim as manager in 2020, who has also played a key role in returning Sporting to the top of Portuguese football.
Sources have told ESPN that City also looked closely at Girona sporting director Quique Carcel before pursuing a deal for Viana.
Begiristain’s decision to leave the Etihad has thrown Pep Guardiola’s future into further doubt.
The pair have worked closely at City and Guardiola will be out of contract at the end of the season.
The 53-year-old has so far dodged questions about whether he will sign another contract extension.
Sources have told ESPN that City want Guardiola to stay and would like an indication about his plans for the future before the new year.
Information from ESPN’s Rob Dawson contributed to this report.