Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has dismissed comments from former England head coach Fabio Capello, emphasizing focus on his side’s remaining matches for the season.
Capello had earlier this week in an interview, accused the former Barcelona boss of ruining football due to his ‘robotic’ playing style.
“Besides, even if it is no longer his fault, he has done a lot of harm to football. Because everyone spent ten years trying to copy him. It ruined Italian football, which lost its nature. I said: ‘Stop, you don’t have Guardiola’s players’! There was also the absurd idea that that was all there was to do to play well.
“A disaster and also a boredom that made many people flee from football, they only have to watch the highlights, why are you going to watch 90 minutes of passes and horizontal passes without fighting, without running…? Fortunately, football is changing. First of all, Spain changed it by winning the European Championship with two wingers and playing fast”, Capello stated.
While speaking in his prematch conference ahead of the Premier League champions crucial match against Brighton and Hove Albion, Guardiola said: “I listen to everything that people say about me, so be careful. It’s not the first time Mr Fabio Capello has said that. I’m not good enough to ruin Italian football, it is very important. A big hug for Fabio.
The Cityzens have endured a very disappointing season so far, suffering elimination from the first round of the playoffs, while they are currently in a battle to qualify for next season’s UEFA Champions League with the FA Cup the only possible option of a silverware.
“It doesn’t hurt. I don’t have any disappointment. We don’t deserve to be there. I am just a spectator to learn and enjoy. There are incredible teams like Atlético, Liverpool who are out”, Guardiola replied when asked about this season’s UCL round of 16 matches.
“This competition, what happened with Julian [Alvarez] and Atlético. The margins. Can you imagine you are out of the Champions League for that reason?
Nobody has to explain to me how special it is but this season we didn’t deserve to be there. In this season, we deserve to be on the sofa with a glass of wine. So, hopefully we can do better, qualify for next season”, he continued.
Olakitan is a young writer with a strong passion for sports, having gained experience with IndyPress and Nimelssa Press. His enthusiasm for sports inspired him to cover events both within his school and beyond. With a deep understanding of the game and a refined skillset, he brings sports coverage to a broad, global audience in a way that’s engaging and accessible.
