Pep link-up! Ex-Liverpool assistant Pep Lijnders agrees to join Pep Guardiola's staff at Man City in backroom shake-up a year after ending Jurgen Klopp partnership

Guardiola is reshaping his backroom team after an under-par 2024-25 campaign and Lijnders is set to be among the fresh faces heading to the Etihad Stadium, report The Athletic. The Dutchman spent nine-and-a-half years at Anfield across two spells under Brendan Rodgers and Jurgen Klopp but now joins their domestic rivals.

Lijnders departed Liverpool with Klopp last summer, taking over as head coach at Austrian side RB Salzburg. He was sacked in December after a poor start to the season, however, and now heads back into coaching underneath a manager.

Lijnders held talks with Norwich over their vacant head coach position earlier this month, according to the report, but the departures of Juanma Lillo, Carlos Vicens and Inigo Dominguez from the Etihad coaching staff have seen the Dutchman head back to the top of the Premier League instead.

City are set to kick off their Club World Cup campaign against Wydad AC in Philadelphia next month before taking on Al Ain and Juventus in the group stage.