Former Manchester United winger Andrei Kanchelskis has backed Manuel Pellegrini to take charge of Zenit St Petersburg at the end of the season.

The Chilean will leave Manchester City in May to make way for Pep Guardiola, who agreed a three-year deal with the Premier League side earlier this season.

Pellegrini has been linked to Valencia and the man himself has indicated that he is open to staying in England.

However, Kanchelskis believes that the 54-year-old would transform Zenit, who will have a vacancy when current head coach Andre Villas-Boas leaves in the summer.

"Pellegrini is a great coach and I am 100% sure that at all levels he is a much better manager than Villas-Boas," BBC Sport quotes Kanchelskis as saying. "I don't know how quickly the Chilean will adapt to Russia, but he can certainly take Zenit to a higher level."

Pellegrini has won the Premier League title and two League Cups during his time at City.