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Joshua Kimmich would welcome Pep Guardiola back to Bayern Munich

Germany midfielder Joshua Kimmich said yesterday that he hopes the rumours are true that Pep Guardiola could be persuaded to once again coach Bayern Munich.

Kimmich made his Bundesliga debut as a 20-year-old under Guardiola, after joining Bayern from RB Leipzig in 2015, and said he would be pleased to see the Manchester City manager return to Bavaria.

EURO 2020 QUALIFIERS, GROUP C
GERMANY BELARUS

German daily Bild claims that Guardiola, along with Ajax's Erik ten Hag and Paris Saint-Germain's Thomas Tuchel, are on Bayern's shortlist of candidates to replace Niko Kovac, who was sacked earlier this month.

"I have a lot to thank him for," Kimmich, 24, said of Guardiola at a press conference for Germany's Euro 2020 qualifier against Belarus on Sunday morning (Singapore time).

"He allowed me, as a player who had only second division experience, to play in the Champions League and Bundesliga.

"We (Bayern) won the double (in 2013-14) and after that I became a national player, so of course I wouldn't complain."

Kimmich, who captained Germany in last month's 2-2 draw against Argentina, added that he doesn't know how realistic Guardiola's return is or what Bayern's plan looks like with interim coach Hansi Flick at the helm.

Germany can book their place at Euro 2020 if they better Northern Ireland's result against Holland. - AFP

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