Pep Guardiola, Del Piero in Vietnam in separate trips Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola walks with his daughter in Hanoi June 12, 2015. Tuoi Tre Bayern Munich manager and former Barcelona head coach Pep Guardiola arrived Friday in Hanoi with his family for a summer vacation, a trip that coincided with a visit of a former Italian footballer who came as an ambassador for a scooter brand. The Spanish football coach had kept his Vietnam trip a secret to the media, but the cat was let out of the bag when some locals ran across him at the five-star Metropole Hanoi Hotel.   Quang Viet, a football comentator who works for The Thao TV channel, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper the same day he went to Metropole at around 1 p.m., and accidentally saw Guardiola at the front desk. Viet said he went on to greet the 44-year-old and suggested an interview, but Guardiola refused and only agreed to take a photo with him. “As a sports commentator, I’m 100 percent sure I have met Pep, not anyone else,” he said. “I also asked why he was in Vietnam but he too rejected the question.” Guardiola’s presence in Vietnam immediately made headlines and stunned Vietnamese fans of Bayern Munich and Barcelona, the La Liga side he spent the majority of his career with before moving to Germany’s Bundesliga. Tuoi Tre finally managed to arrange an interview late the same day with the Spanish, who said he is on a holiday with his wife, Cristina, and their three children.   The Guardiolas arrived at Noi Bai International Airport from Singapore, with the former footballer wearing casual clothes and bringing simple luggage in order not to be recognized. Pep said he is in Vietnam only to travel and the trip is personal and has no truck with football. The Bayern Munich manager thus said he only wants to visit attractions as an ordinary tourist rather than being disturbed. Pep admitted he does not know much about the Southeast Asian country, but has taken reference from friends and the Internet. The Spanish man decided to bring his family to Vietnam out of curiosity about a small country with beautiful nature and friendly people, he shared. Pep said Hanoi is beautiful and the Guardiolas had a great and interesting afternoon touring around the city’s iconic Sword Lake on cyclos. Obviously, the former Barcelona coach was recognized by fans during the walk, and had to reluctantly give his autographs and take photos with them.   A local tourist guide took the family to a famous restaurant for dinner the same day, after which Pep spoke highly of Vietnamese food. The Guardiolas had to leave the restaurant earlier than planned as electricity suddenly went out.   A Spanish former footballer, Guardiola became coach of Barcelona B after retirement, and succeeded Frank Rijkaard as the first team manager in 2008. In his first season as manager, Guardiola guided Barcelona to a treble, winning La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League. The following season, Guardiola led Barcelona to win the Supercopa de España, the UEFA Super Cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup, bringing his tally to the maximum of six trophies out of six competitions in one year, thus achieving the sextuple. On 30 June 2012, Guardiola announced his retirement as Barcelona manager, after winning 14 trophies in just four years in charge of the club, and joined Bayern Munich in 2013. In his first season at the club, Guardiola won the Bundesliga, the DFB-Pokal, the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. Del Piero in Vietnam to promote Vespa Besides the famous football coach, Noi Bai airport yesterday also received another special passenger, former Italian international and World Cup winner Alessandro Del Piero. Unlike Pep Guardiola, the Vietnam trip of Del Piero had previously been made known to the media, so the Italian was welcomed by many Vietnamese fans shortly after arrival. Juventus legend Del Piero, who arrived at Noi Bai at 12 p.m, is in his maiden Vietnam trip as the global brand ambassador for Vespa, the famous scooter manufactured by Piaggio.   Del Piero also received flowers and a special gift: a non la – or the iconic Vietnamese conical hat, from Nguyen Thi Thu Phuong, who represented the Vietnamese fan club of the Italian football team. “My love for this Italian football star has been with me for the last 20 years,” Phuong said, while admitting she started idolizing the former Juventus forward since the age of six. Del Piero rejected all questions from the press who had awaited him at the airport, and was quickly escorted by security guards to a car bound for Metropole Hanoi. The 2006 FIFA World Cup winner will have three days in Vietnam, during which he is slated to visit some famous attractions in the capital city and attend a press meeting for new Vespa product on Saturday. He will pay a charity visit to the Hanoi Central Hospital on Sunday morning. Del Piero has represented the Italian national team at three FIFA World Cups and four UEFA European Football Championships, most notably winning the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and reaching the final of UEFA Euro 2000 with Italy. In 2004, he was named in the FIFA 100, a list of the 125 greatest living footballers selected by Pelé as a part of FIFA's centenary celebrations. Del Piero now works as a free agent. TUOI TRE NEWS