Press reports have revealed serious negotiations with Spanish coach Pep Guardiola to convince him to coach the Italian national team, in an effort to correct the team's course after its failure to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in the last three editions.

Italian Sky network reported that Paolo Maldini, the new technical director of the Italian Football Federation, and federation consultant Leonardo visited Guardiola in Barcelona over the weekend to discuss the possibility of hiring him.

The report indicated that there are no initial indications regarding Guardiola's approval to take on the responsibility, following his departure from Manchester City, where he spent 10 years.

The Italian national team, four-time world champion, failed to qualify for the World Cup for the third consecutive time last March, leading to the dismissal of team coach Gennaro Gattuso, team director Gianluigi Buffon, and Italian Football Federation president Gabriele Gravina.

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Giovanni Malagò, former president of the Italian Olympic Committee and chairman of the organizing committee for the Milan/Cortina Winter Olympics, was elected as the new president of the Italian Football Federation. Malagò enlisted AC Milan legend Maldini as the federation's technical director.

The Italian national team remains without a coach, and hiring Guardiola would be a major boost given the great achievements of the Spanish coach, winner of three UEFA Champions League titles with Manchester City and Barcelona, in addition to 12 domestic league titles with the same two clubs plus Bayern Munich.

Malagò declined to comment on the possibility of hiring Guardiola, adding via Sky network that the list of candidates would not only include Roberto Mancini and Andrea Pirlo.