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Manchester City are set to give Giovanni van Bronckhorst the chance to put himself in the frame to replace Pep Guardiola by appointing him coach of their sister club in New York.

Sunday Mirror Sport revealed in September that former Feyenoord boss Van Bronckhorst had joined the Etihad staff as the Premier League champions began to prepare for life after Guardiola.

The Dutchman was handed an access-all-areas role at the club to learn about the inner workings of the City Football Group, which also includes New York and clubs in Spain, Australia, Uruguay and Japan.

The plan is for him to take over their MLS franchise after Domenec Torrent stepped down as head coach after New York’s semi-final play-off defeat to Toronto.

Van Bronckhorst has visited both New York and Melbourne in the last two months and has also been observing Guardiola’s coaching methods in Manchester.

(Image: X00550)

(Image: Sunday Mirror)

Guardiola’s contract expires in the summer of 2022 and City want a replacement in place who shares the same philosophy as the Catalan.

Mikel Arteta has worked on the coaching staff as City have won back-to-back Premier League titles and is regarded as a potential manager.

But the recruitment of Van Bronckhorst is a significant development.

The 44-year-old played for Barcelona and is a disciple of Guardiola’s coaching hero Johan Cruyff.

He led Feyenoord to their first Eredivisie title in 18 years in 2017 and won the Dutch Cup twice.

(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

He was planning to take a year-long sabbatical after stepping down from the Rotterdam club at the end of last season.

But he changed his mind after being approached by City.

Sources in Holland insist that Van Bronkhorst would be unlikely to accept the New York job if there was no plan for him to eventually move into a more prominent role inside the CFG.

He has Champions League experience and has a number of close friends inside the group, including former Rangers team-mate Claudio Reyna, who is New York’s director of football.

City chiefs have previously looked at using New York as a proving ground.

When Patrick Vieira moved to the States three years ago it was hoped he would one day become City boss.

But the Frenchman has since moved on to Nice.