ITK: Guardiola 'Approves' of Ancelotti Replacement as Van Gaal, Enrique & Tuchel All Linked

Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has revealed that former coach Pep Guardiola approves of the appointment the Bavarian club are set to make in the way of Carlo Ancelotti's recent departure.

Ancelotti was relieved of his position last week, a day after Bayern were soundly beaten in the Champions League by big spending Paris Saint-Germain.

Willy Sagnol has been put in temporary charge of the team. But a more permanent hire is expected imminently and Hoeness saw fit to inform Manchester City boss Guardiola, who won three successive Bundesliga titles between 2013 and 2016, as to who it will be.

"I told [Guardiola] who we would appoint in the next few days. He was satisfied," Hoeness explained to German publication AZ this week.

Exactly who that will be remains to be seen, with several high profile candidates linked with the vacant job, all of whom could theoretically meet Guardiola's approval.

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Louis van Gaal is one such name that has emerged in recent days. The veteran Dutchman hasn't worked since leaving Manchester United in May 2016, but has prior experience with Bayern after winning a domestic double in 2010 and steering them to the Champions League final.

He managed Guardiola as a player during a largely successful stint at Barcelona as well.

Elsewhere, former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique, a former teammate of Guardiola's in the 1990s for club and country, as well as Barça B coach while Pep was in charge of the first-team at Camp Nou, has also been linked with a move to Bavaria.

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The Spaniard is another who is currently available after leaving Barcelona in May.

That can also be said of ex-Borussia Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel, a man tasked with wrestling the Bundesliga title away from Guardiola and Bayern after taking over at Westfalenstadion in 2015.

In their sole season as rivals, Tuchel's Dortmund finished just 10 points back from Guardiola's Bayern at the top of the table. It is the closest that Dortmund have challenged Bayern since they themselves won their last league title under the guidance of Jurgen Klopp and earned Tuchel the respect and friendship of the Catalan coach.

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Bild has speculated that Tuchel, along with Enrique, is a likely option.