- 6 minutes ago
Guardiola on Man City innocence of Premier League charges from October 10, 2026
10/10/2023
CFGA, Manchester, UK
10/10/2023
CFGA, Manchester, UK
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:13Good afternoon guys, hope you're well, same process as everyone, mics on either side.
00:16If you can introduce yourself by name and organisation, we'll set them by, we'll part
00:20way through for the Sundays, for Saturday at 10.30.
00:23Start with Dan please.
00:25Yeah, we're down row at BC.
00:27Dan, we just grabbed the mic there.
00:30Thanks Alex.
00:30Hi Pep, Dan Rowan, BBC.
00:32You said last year that you would walk away from the club if it was found that they had
00:36misled you over their denials of breaking financial rules.
00:40Given the sheer scale of the charges issued by the Premier League this week, how confident
00:46are you that you have been told everything?
00:48Has it in any way affected your belief in the club?
00:54Good morning everyone.
00:56My first words on behalf of the club is for our thoughts for the people in Turkey and Syria
01:02for this terrible moment.
01:06It's happened.
01:11My first thought is that we are already being condemned.
01:15So like it's happened, what's happened right now these weeks after Monday, it's happened
01:19the same what happened in UEFA.
01:21That UEFA, it was a condemn.
01:23We were, we had already accusation, now we have just charged.
01:30Why should, in that moment when over time the situation, when they, what they told me before
01:36the defend, the accusation for UEFA, the club proved that we're completely innocent, why
01:43should not think right now when there is no, not even an accusation, it's just condemned,
01:50it's just charges or suggestions.
01:53So you have to understand that between 90 teams of the family is accusing us without the
02:00last opportunity to defend.
02:01Even in the words of my club, my owner, my chairman, my CEO, my people explain everything during
02:06these three or four years, you know exactly in what, on what side I am.
02:15You're confident and obviously innocent until proven guilty, clearly, but because of the
02:20unprecedented number of charges over such a long period of time, does it sadden you that
02:27inevitably there will be some out there, people watching on, who will reach a conclusion that
02:35some of the achievements, the record-breaking achievements that you've brought to this club
02:39are tainted?
02:41Another side, I would say that we are lucky we live in a marvelous country, that we have
02:49a society where everyone, like you said, is innocent until proven guilty.
02:55We didn't have this opportunity, we are already sentenced and tough.
03:02What's going to happen, I don't know.
03:05So, on the other side, personally, I'm happy that we are here because we're going to
03:10say, like UEFA happen, okay, you have the chance to defend.
03:14We cannot defend, I think we have good lawyers, but we cannot say that UEFA had the bad, bad
03:19lawyers.
03:20And I think the Premier League, supportive of 19 teams to put it out for the Premier League,
03:26are going to take good lawyers too, to defend the position like we are going to defend our
03:31position.
03:31I would have loved to wait and see, and the time will see or the time will dictate what's
03:37going to happen.
03:38And just in case we are not innocent, we will accept what the judge, the Premier League decide.
03:48But what happens if, in the same situation that UEFA happens, we are innocent, what happens
04:00to restore or pay back our damage?
04:03Because the damage now is for one decade, eight, nine, ten.
04:07So, one week later, UEFA make a sentence against us, nine teams, Burley, Wolves, Leicester, Newcastle,
04:18Spurs, Arsenal, United, Liverpool, Chelsea, out of the Champions League, but they won at that
04:26position.
04:27Like Julius Caesar said, they are not in this world, they are not enemies of friends, they
04:32are just interest, and they want to put it out to take that position that we want on
04:37the pitch, you know, take it there and take it in our position.
04:41So, now, is it different than in that moment?
04:45Absolutely zero.
04:46The same.
04:47The same articles, the same accusations, the same everything, you have to be out of the
04:51UEFA Champions League, you have to go to the League One, no, no, League One is too much,
04:54League Two, or maybe conference.
04:57We were in main road.
04:58We were not a team who won a long history, a lot of titles.
05:01We have been in the low divisions, we'll be back there, not a problem, just in case.
05:06We'll call Paul Dikov, Mike Somerby, and we will do, again, a good process, we'll be
05:12back, I'm pretty sure.
05:14But they should wait, they should wait, because at the end it's, okay, the Premier League,
05:20they have not decided, put it there, okay, we're going to defend ourselves, what happened
05:24in the UEFA situation.
05:26Didn't wait, and now didn't wait, neither.
05:29You have to admit us already, Sky Sports, what was the reaction of the players, and
05:36your message to them, and how do you prevent them from being distracted by such an unprecedented
05:41story?
05:43It's not unprecedented story, it's the second time of this story.
05:46We lived there before, two or three years ago, where there was a sentence.
05:50He is not, don't forget it.
05:52He is not, you accuse us, I should be out.
05:59But between these 19 teams before, and these 19 teams now, between the word of them, or
06:05the word of my people, I'm sorry, I'm relying on the word of my people.
06:11So you didn't have to have an address with the players?
06:15No, we didn't, the club, okay, they talk with all of us, but I didn't speak, we're training
06:22like normal to try to beat Aston Villa.
06:24And you're confident that they won't be distracted with the players?
06:28Why should I be distracted with the confidence of my players?
06:31What do we want?
06:33So the moment from Sergio's core, the moment for Ingeal, Gundogan, Aston Villa's core,
06:38for all the big moments we are leaving, the seven years belong to us, for our fans, for
06:43our people.
06:45This is, no one can pull it up.
06:48It's impossible.
06:49So, and after, okay, the court will dictate what happened.
06:54And I said before, so at the end it's nice.
06:57But after, when it's going to happen, I'm fully convinced that we'll be innocent.
07:02What will happen next?
07:05Will it stop now?
07:06It's not because of the UEFA.
07:08So since Abu Dhabi took over, I'll take over the club.
07:12Since the day one, it was like that.
07:16What do you think has been wrong with your team in some of the matches in recent weeks?
07:20Because you've had a string of results recently that have been unlike your side.
07:24Well, we lost in the spores.
07:26The rest was quite good.
07:29In the FA Cup, in Premier League, and the game in the spores, I'm sorry, was not bad enough.
07:36Not good enough, but also needed a bad enough.
07:38So we have to, of course, we know the situation.
07:40We have to make more consistency in terms of the results.
07:43And we're going to try on Sunday, starting Sunday.
07:45In past seasons, you've had a number of players who, I know they have to earn places in your side,
07:51but from the outside, there seem to have been automatic picks for you
07:54because you could rely on their form and rely on their fitness.
07:57Do you think you've still got a number of players who are in that same bracket this season?
08:04I'm not right with the team, and I know how they're training lately.
08:12And normally we didn't give up in the previous season in the toughest moments.
08:16We were there, and I have the feeling that we will continue to do it.
08:22You mentioned as recently as Friday about the teams who'd written a letter to the Premier League
08:27to get you knocked out of the Champions League.
08:30What do you think is the long-term aim here?
08:34Do you think it's that they want your owners to sell?
08:36They want you to go?
08:37What do you think is the long-term aim of this sort of sustained accusations?
08:44We were not part of the establishment and always have been in this league.
08:47But in the same time, I understand they can do it,
08:51but only I regret the fact, wait, no.
08:54Let us ourselves to defend, please.
08:57So that's all.
08:59So I don't know in other countries, but in this country,
09:03everyone is innocent until, you know, proven guilty and didn't happen.
09:08So when welfare was a sentence, he is not even that.
09:12And we are already, what are you going to happen?
09:14What are you going to happen?
09:15What happened? We're innocent.
09:16And who's going to get back, return our damage?
09:19What the people write and tell about us.
09:22Here there is a thousand million efforts behind the scenes.
09:27So they are acquisition something.
09:29We are not even wrong to win games.
09:31No, no, no.
09:31We try to do our best on the pitch like everyone else.
09:35A few lessons.
09:37Points, fingers for the other ones.
09:39A few lessons for the other ones.
09:41They should do it.
09:43Unfortunately, it will be a long period, today I speak,
09:46because it's my turn and it will be over from now on
09:50because now it's time for the lawyers for both sides
09:53to defend the positions for one side and for the other one.
09:56And I'm not talking more, but unfortunately it should happen immediately in one month,
10:04two months or three months.
10:05It will be longer, I know that.
10:07But it's what it is.
10:08We live in what happens in welfare.
10:10We continue to do it in that way.
10:14Pep, what do you want to see from your team on Sunday?
10:18What's the main development you want to see?
10:21Try to beat Aston Villa.
10:22Try to play good.
10:24Try to know exactly what we do against a good team,
10:27a good side with many weapons,
10:28with a manager with a lot of experience in important games.
10:32How good they do both sides and try to beat them.
10:41This is what you have to do.
10:42The players will be focused on our game, that's for sure.
10:45Here and in the past, in the future, like it happened in the past.
10:49But can, even if they are focused on the game,
10:52can all of this be used as an extra layer of motivation, maybe?
10:56No.
10:59No, of course, it hurts when they want to take care of what we won in the past,
11:04on the pitch, absolutely everything.
11:07So, yeah, of course, right.
11:10But, you know, that happened on Monday,
11:12a lot of rumours, a lot of noise in the next days.
11:14But I had the feeling that when the games,
11:17you know, a lot of games are coming back,
11:19the people, you know,
11:22everyone is going to do the job that they have to do.
11:24Ourselves on the pitch, the lawyers in the court.
11:30How much contact have you had with Ferran and Khaldun this week?
11:34And what kind of assurances have they given you
11:37that everything was above board?
11:39The same one happened in UEFA,
11:41in the moment of the UEFA, the same.
11:42Not even one step back.
11:44I would say they are more confident
11:45because they have more experience,
11:47I would say they know more information.
11:49They have a lot, a lot of pages that we present in UEFA
11:51that I think it's going to present, introduce
11:57against Premier League.
11:59So, yeah.
12:01So, let's say, do everyone continue to do our job.
12:05Everyone in his department is going to do the job.
12:07The officials do the job.
12:08The doctors do the job.
12:09Nutrition do the job.
12:10You do the job, Pep.
12:11The players do the job.
12:12And everyone is going to do the job.
12:18It seems like this is going to take many years to play out.
12:23How frustrating is that for you,
12:25that everyone has already condemned you
12:28and it will take years for you to prove your innocence?
12:31MR.
12:31Well, it happened in UEFA.
12:32There was one or two years until it happened.
12:37So, now it's happened.
12:38I think it's going to talk about that every single day.
12:42So, yeah, adapt, adjust, and focus on what you have to do on the pitch.
12:48Would you like it to be settled as soon as possible?
12:51MR.
12:51Yeah, but there are a process, you know, a timing.
12:55The timing is the timing, and there are a lot of process, you know,
12:59and everything is not one day for the other one.
13:01We know it.
13:02So, it will be long.
13:03So, yeah, try to do it.
13:05I know it's going to happen.
13:06We would love to say tomorrow, just in case we are innocent or not,
13:10but that is not going to happen.
13:15Hi, Pep at the back.
13:16Ian Leiderman from the Daily Mail.
13:18I'll just ask you a very, very simple question.
13:21Do you think that other clubs in the Premier League
13:24don't like Manchester City, don't want Manchester City,
13:28are resentful of what Manchester City have achieved?
13:31It's difficult for me to answer this question.
13:34What do you think?
13:35I don't know.
13:42They open a precedent right now.
13:44What they have done to us, be careful.
13:47Be careful in the future, because many clubs,
13:50can they make suggestions,
13:52and there are a lot of clubs that they can be accused,
13:58like we have been accused, without maybe being innocent.
14:01I don't know what's going to happen in the future.
14:03But it's a question, I don't know,
14:05because I can have an opinion, a feeling,
14:07but it's like the people say,
14:09what the fans think, I don't know,
14:12what they push to get rid of,
14:16you know, out in the competition,
14:19that is obvious.
14:21So, because they believe that we didn't behave properly,
14:28and we can accept that,
14:31but let us defend when we believe we did it properly.
14:35Like, we show not one century ago,
14:39so just a few years ago,
14:41like the same situation happened today,
14:43I had it in the past,
14:44the same happened in the welfare,
14:46it's happened today,
14:47and we didn't learn about that.
14:49So, there are a lot, a lot of things,
14:51there are suggestions,
14:52there are not sentences about that,
14:54it's completely different.
14:55But do you suspect that this has been driven by the clubs,
14:59this has been driven by the other clubs,
15:02is that what you suspect?
15:03Yeah, of course.
15:04It's a Premier League.
15:06Why do you think it's been driven by the clubs?
15:09I don't know.
15:10You have to go to all the CEOs,
15:13Danny Levy's, and all these kind of people,
15:15and ask them, go to the press conference,
15:16and ask them, and do it.
15:19Last couple of things,
15:20please go to James.
15:24When you're faced with a situation like this,
15:26does it make you yourself more determined than ever
15:31to fight for your club,
15:34you know, on the pitch as well as off it?
15:36Hopefully, the reason why they are going to sack me out of here
15:39is the results.
15:41This is mainly the reason why the manager
15:43is staying in the position,
15:44or staying in the position.
15:45Hopefully, we'll be there.
15:48And I think in that situation,
15:49we will decide together
15:50for the confidence that we have,
15:52to trust each other.
15:53But I'm not moving from this seat.
15:58I can assure you,
16:00more than ever,
16:01I wouldn't stay that.
16:02Now, more than ever.
16:05Sometimes I have doubts,
16:06seven years, eight years,
16:07seven years already,
16:08it's a long time.
16:08Not even in any country,
16:10so many, many years,
16:12imagine in the Premier League,
16:13so many, many years.
16:15But now,
16:16I don't want to move on.
16:18Not because
16:20the people say,
16:21yeah,
16:21they lied to you, Pep.
16:23They did lie to me.
16:25Look what happened in UEFA.
16:27I said to them,
16:28what happened?
16:29So, Pep,
16:29we did nothing wrong.
16:32We proved it.
16:33Now, it's the same case.
16:35Why should I
16:37don't trust with my people,
16:38I trust with
16:41all the CEOs
16:42and owners
16:43for the 19 clubs,
16:45like it was nine clubs
16:46in the UEFA?
16:47It happened?
16:47No.
16:49I trust with my people.
16:51Between them
16:52and my people
16:52and my people.
16:54Not one second
16:55for the other ones.
16:56Not one second.
16:57And when
16:58you have a situation
16:59where you feel like
17:01everyone's out
17:01to get you,
17:04as a club,
17:05as a manager,
17:05as a playing squad,
17:06can you use that
17:07as a tool
17:07to create
17:08a siege mentality
17:09to give you
17:11that extra
17:13sense of desire
17:14might actually
17:15help you get through
17:16some of the problems
17:17you've encountered
17:17on the pitch
17:18in recent weeks?
17:19We are not alone
17:19when we are together.
17:21But against 19 teams
17:22we are alone.
17:23That's for sure.
17:24But it's not
17:25a problem.
17:26That will not be
17:27sustained in two years
17:28just for,
17:28oh, this energy
17:29because they accuse you.
17:31You have to play good.
17:33You have to beat...
17:36You have to beat...
17:37We have to beat
17:37Aston Villa.
17:39These 19 clubs
17:40are going to help
17:40us to beat Aston Villa.
17:42We have to do it.
17:43Like always,
17:44we have done it.
17:46So,
17:49Agüero scored a goal
17:50to give us our Premier League.
17:51Gundo Gano scored
17:52the two goals
17:52with Rodri
17:53to win the Premier League
17:54against Aston Villa
17:55a few months ago.
17:56We did it.
17:56On the pitch.
17:58Do you want to do it
17:59off the pitch?
17:59Do you want to take it
18:00out of the pitch?
18:00It's okay.
18:01But let us to defend.
18:02Please,
18:03let us to defend.
18:05And after,
18:06if we did something wrong,
18:09like,
18:09I guess it's not going
18:10to happen,
18:11but just in case it happens,
18:12we accept it.
18:13I said before the UEFA,
18:15you recorded the UEFA,
18:16so I rely on them 100%.
18:19If at the end
18:19the judge said
18:20we did something wrong,
18:21we're going to accept it.
18:22Of course,
18:22they're going to accept it.
18:25But what happens
18:25if we're innocent?
18:27We're going to get back
18:28the damage,
18:29all the damage
18:29they have done.
18:31No,
18:31they have to go.
18:32They have to punish
18:33the money
18:34and poor introduction
18:35and go to second division
18:37and third and third.
18:38I don't know
18:38how many ideas.
18:39I don't know
18:39where they come from.
18:40I don't know
18:41how many ideas
18:41I read what they have
18:42to happen.
18:43And the opposite said
18:44what's going to happen.
18:46Hi, Pep.
18:47You're being very defiant,
18:49and that's quite understandable,
18:50and I hear what you're saying
18:51about you defending your club
18:53and the damage
18:54that has been done
18:55with regard to UEFA,
18:56but you're a human being,
18:57your players are.
19:00Surely,
19:00you must have some doubts
19:01and quiet moments
19:02about the future,
19:03what might happen
19:03because no one
19:05really knows, right?
19:06And that can't help
19:07you as a manager,
19:08your football team,
19:09the players you're trying
19:10to get to play for you
19:11because, you know,
19:13they're human beings
19:13and they're bound
19:15to have doubts, right?
19:16The future is lunchtime
19:18after this marvellous
19:19press conference.
19:20Aston Villa,
19:21I'm talking about,
19:22Sunday, for example.
19:23Aston Villa, of course,
19:24and after Arsenal
19:25and Champions League
19:26is around the corner.
19:27This is, I would say,
19:28is the future.
19:29What's going to happen,
19:30who knows it?
19:31So, we cannot
19:34control it.
19:36So, when we will adapt,
19:37what the players have to do
19:38is, what they have to do,
19:40defend this club
19:41as best as possible.
19:42What they have done
19:43in the last 10,
19:4412 years,
19:4513 years,
19:45especially when,
19:47you know,
19:48our only chairman
19:49took over the club.
19:50With regards to having
19:51to manage human beings,
19:53would this be
19:55one of the worst things
19:56that can happen
19:56midway for a season,
19:57a campaign,
19:58Champions League
19:59about to start again,
20:00you're chasing the title,
20:01is this maybe
20:03the sort of worst nightmare
20:05for you as a manager?
20:06Right now,
20:06where they're going to live.
20:07What's going on?
20:08No.
20:11I don't know
20:11what's going to happen.
20:13It's the same.
20:13I live,
20:14I had the same feeling
20:15that happened in UEFA,
20:16honestly.
20:16It was the same feeling.
20:17It was quite,
20:17quite similar.
20:19No, UEFA was worse.
20:21It was quite similar.
20:22So,
20:23I would say tomorrow
20:25the players,
20:25focus it
20:26in your talent
20:27and your effort
20:28and go to
20:30what's going to happen
20:31if at the end,
20:34after the sentence,
20:35in one year and a half,
20:36two years,
20:36and after we see,
20:37you know,
20:38what happened.
20:39I don't want to anticipate it
20:40because, honestly,
20:41I don't know.
20:42All the people
20:42anticipate it already,
20:44but I don't want to anticipate
20:45what is going to happen.
20:46Yeah.
20:47I'll go for time
20:48to see if I am
20:49on Saturday, please.