Pep Guardiola almost didn’t join Man City because he couldn’t find the right house to live in

Pep Guardiola was ready to pull out of his move to Manchester City because he couldn’t find a suitable house to live in.

Less than two months after City had spectacularly announced the Catalan as their next manager, club chiefs became concerned he had changed his mind.

Guardiola was demanding a city centre residence for him and his family to compare with the mansion he had spent the past three years living in during his time at Bayern Munich.

But when he couldn’t find anything to meet his exacting requirements, City believed they were set to miss out on the two-time Champions League winner.

The story was revealed in a new book about Guardiola, which chronicles his time in England.

Spanish journalists Pol Ballus and Lu Martin were given behind the scenes access for ‘Pep’s City: The Making of a Superteam,’ which is out on October 24.

Guardiola and key figures at City, such as sporting director Txiki Begiristain have cooperated with the book, which details the club’s fear that they were set to lose the former Barcelona and Bayern manager before he had taken charge of his first game.

Former player liaison manager David Quintana had been sent on a top-secret mission to Germany to help Guardiola’s transition to Manchester.

Such was the secrecy surrounding the meeting that Guardiola wasn’t even referred to by name – instead being dubbed ‘The German.’

Ballus and Martin write: “‘Go to Munich but tell no one,” Begiristain ordered him. ‘It seems we’ve got a problem with The German.’

“They did indeed. In Munich, the Guardiola family had lived in a spacious mansion on Sophienstrasse. Pep demanded accommodation of a similar standard in Manchester and the issue was in danger of becoming a deal-breaker.

“Quintana and Pep met over a leisurely three-hour lunch in a local Vietnamese restaurant.

“Lunch was spent discussing key elements of the club’s organisation, infrastructure, players… but the issues around the Guardiolas’ new home remained unsolved.

“An anxious Begiristain demanded a full debrief on Quintana’s return.

“‘So, what did you tell him?’

“‘The plain truth: that there basically isn’t anything like that in Manchester.’

“The problem was that Pep was refusing to live anywhere but the city centre and there just wasn’t the right kind of property there to suit him. It didn’t exist.”

Begiristain thought his plans were about to go “up in smoke,” according to the writers.

But Quintana put his mind at ease, saying: “‘I just told him, ‘No worries; if we have to, we’ll build you what you want. It might take a few more months, but we’ll make it happen.’”

Guardiola ultimately moved into the luxurious apartment complex in Salford, called City Suites.

Other City stars have also bought properties in there, including Ilkay Gundogan.