Several different Spanish media outlets are reporting (Mundo Deportivo) that Sir Alex Ferguson and Pep Guardiola—who both missed Thursday’s elite UEFA Coaches Forum (and coincidentally were both in New York)—have been in talks over the former Barca manager possibly taking the torch from Fergie at the end of the year.

Sir Alex’s retirement and successor have been the source of much debate for the better part of the last decade, and it seems as though the question of who will be the next Manchester United manager may finally be answered.

Of course, we shouldn’t get ahead of ourselves too much here. Yes, the fact that these two managers skipped the Forum to have private talks on a completely different continent is somewhat intriguing, but after all, these two men are friends away from the pitch.

Who’s to say that they hadn’t had this friendly catchup planned for a while and didn’t want to postpone it any further, despite it clashing with UEFA’s annual event.

I think what is really driving the rumours is the fact that Guardiola—along with Jose Mourinho—has been one of the breakaway favourites to take on the United job for a long time now.

When the former Barca man stepped down and announced that he would be taking a year off from football, those suspicions were only heightened.

It has been spoken about in whispers this summer that the current Premier League season may be the final one which sees the great Sir Alex Ferguson in charge of his mighty Red Devils.

This, coinciding with Guardiola’s year-long break, now followed by a “coincidental” meeting in America, will only continue to fuel the rumours of the Spaniard’s possible arrival at Old Trafford next summer.

Nothing is confirmed yet by any means, but perhaps United’s future post-Fergie is slowly starting to reveal itself.

Elite.