England's leading football sides will be having a Pep talk in their boardrooms this winter – as Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United each consider the possibility of hiring the world's leading manager.
Since virtually the day he started at Bayern Munich, Pep Guardiola has allowed it to be an open secret that he intends to eventually swap the Bundesliga for England.
And, with many of the Premier League's leading lights in periods of flux, his impending availability could prompt decisive impact in various boardrooms.
For some time, it was thought that Pep was destined for City – where he'd team up with Director of Football Txiki Begiristain and CEO Ferran Soriano, both of whom he worked with at Barcelona.
The recruiting of the Spanish duo to Manchester in 2012 seemed to pre-empt Guardiola's following – and, though current incumbent Manuel Pellegrini was handed a surprise new two-year deal in August, it was assumed that he'd make way for Pep next summer.
Except, it seems that City might've known something the rest of us didn't, and that the two years given to Pellegrini were intentional – with Guardiola increasingly likely to extend his time in Munich by at least another year.
Privately, he insists he is destined for the Premier League, and that it is only a matter of the right timing that stops him from making that move. A desperate call from Roman Abramovich, asking him to replace old foe Jose Mourinho, would prove briefly tempting, but would fall on deaf ears.
Instead, it now appears most likely that Pep will arrive in England in the summer of 2017. Timing that would work for City, with the end of Pellegrini's contract, but also for United and Arsenal.
Arsene Wenger and Louis Van Gaal are each scheduled to depart the Premier League – and, likely, football generally – at the end of the 2016/17 season, and both clubs would prove more tempting than City.
Their history and reputation is far more in-keeping with the standards of Barca and Bayern – with Pep previously taking fire at billionaire backed clubs such as Chelsea and City.
His obsession while in Germany is with taking Bayern to the Champions League, a feat the side he inherited achieved, but something he's yet to come close to replicating.
That shortcoming has undermined Guardiola's standing – his 'genius' reputation viewed with increasing suspicion by some in Germany.
Bayern legend Lothar Matthaus came out publicly in May to criticise the manager, despite the side romping to the Bundesliga title.
The World Cup winner said: “His team no longer has the stability they had for over eight months, enchanting football fans up and down Germany.
“It seems the players are losing a bit of belief in the coach, and he hadn't expected that."
Not all is rosy behind the scenes at Bayern. The fall out between Guardiola and long-standing doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt – which saw the latter leave the club – a perfect illustration.
Pep's style has been described as “boring" by Franz Beckenbauer, while another ex-midfielder, Steffen Effenberg, criticised his touchline demeanour – branding it “detrimental to the team".
There have also been suggestions that he's relied too heavily on importing Spanish talent – the signing of Xabi Alonso, which ultimately forced fan favourite Bastian Schweinsteiger out of the club, was particularly contentious.
His position is far from under threat, but there is confidence at Bayern that Pep's departure – whenever it might come, as it'll remain his decision – will not be the end of the world.
Certainly, if Bayern again fall short in the Champions League, there'll be plenty of debate next April and May over just how 'untouchable' he really is.
At which stage, Pep may well be tempted to listen more closely to his English suitors.
