Manchester City have announced that former Newcastle United and Portugal midfielder Hugo Viana will replace Txiki Begiristain as the club's director of football at the end of the season.
In a statement the club said: "Following a trophy-laden twelve years at the Etihad Stadium, Txiki will leave his current post following the Club’s involvement in this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup and will be succeeded by Hugo Viana of Sporting CP.
"Viana will begin his full-time role in the summer of 2025, but will collaborate with Txiki in the preceding months to ensure a smooth transition.
"We look forward to paying tribute to Txiki’s outstanding contribution to Manchester City at the end of the season."
Who is Hugo Viana?
Born on 15 January 1983 in Barcelos, Portugal, Viana started his playing career as a midfielder for Sporting CP, winning the Young Footballer of the Year award in 2001/02, before moving to Newcastle that summer, aged 19.
He went on to make 39 Premier League appearances for Newcastle, scoring two goals and providing six assists.
The Portugal international, who played 29 times for his country, enjoyed further spells at clubs including Valencia and Braga before he retired aged 33 in October 2016.
The following summer Viana took up his first role as director of football at Belenenses in Portugal, leaving the post six months later.
He returned to his first club Sporting in 2018 in a similar capacity, which coincided with an improvement in the club's fortunes as they won their first league title in 19 years in 2021 and were then crowned champions last season.
Viana's reputation in player recruitment reportedly put him on the radar of a number of clubs, with Sporting selling players such as Manuel Ugarte, Pedro Porro and Matheus Nunes for profit.
