Bayern Munich’s press officer took to the microphone, leant forward and said, in perfect English and with a smile: “Tell the people in England: no chance.” He was merely reinforcing the message that had Pep Guardiola had just finished delivering.

The Catalan coach has ruled himself out of the running for the Manchester United job, insisting he plans to continue at Bayern Munich for at least the next two years.

“I signed for three years. I am here, I am Bayern’s and I want to stay here for (the) two more years (on my contract) to do my job,” Guardiola said. “We won the Bundesliga but I feel that we can still improve. I still have a job to do.

“I knew the style of Spanish football perfectly but it was not easy for me to go to Germany and change culture and the style. I feel like I need more time to feel that this is really my team,” he added. “I absolutely do feel that Bayern is my team now but we can play better and in that sense I still have work to do.”

Guardiola, who was speaking ahead of Wednesday night's Champions League semi-final, first leg against Real Madrid, declared that he was "proud" of his team and the way that they have taken to his "little changes" at the club, adding: "I want to stay here because I am comfortable here, the people are such gentlemen in my work and I want to stay a little bit longer."

In other words, “no chance”.