Pep Guardiola Downplays Any Rivalry With Arteta

Posted by: Eninu William in International Football September 25, 2024

Following Sunday’s intense 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium, Pep Guardiola has downplayed the rivalry between Manchester City and Arsenal. He revealed that he texted Mikel Arteta after the game.

Following the game, there were a number of well-publicized arguments between the players and the coaching staff. One such instance involved Erling Haaland mockingly instructing Arteta to “stay humble.” Several City players publicly criticized the Gunners.

John Stones called them out for playing “dirty,”. Bernardo Silva also poked fun at the amount of time wasted, and Manuel Akanji declared he didn’t think Arsenal could win the championship.

Arteta retaliated on Tuesday, suggesting that City employs different strategies when it comes to the dark arts of football.

“I was there for four years. I have all the information. So I know, believe me,” the Spaniard said in response to the players’ criticism.

Guardiola, 53, asserts he has no issues with Arteta’s strategies, but it’s not something he wanted to get involved in.

“I realize for many times that the opponent after winning four Premier Leagues in a row, six in seven, they aren’t going to install the red carpet in every single game,” Guardiola said after his side’s Carabao Cup victory over Watford on Tuesday night.

“This is the challenge, we need that. The opponents can play how they want to do it. It belongs to us to handle them to break them in the way we have to do. With Mikel, after a time, we text each other and the relationship doesn’t change and they decide to play in a way that is more than perfect.

“I said to Mikel, they did amazingly, it’s not a problem. They know their players and do exactly what they have to do. It’s not about that, it’s about what we have to do to do it better,” he said.

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