Pep puzzled over City’s ‘arrogance’
PEP Guardiola defended Manchester City and his players after criticism in China’s state media over his club’s “arrogance” during their stopover in Nanjing and Shanghai for last week’s Premier League Asia Trophy.
The Premier League champions, who played in the four-team tournament with Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United, were lambasted in an editorial in official news agency Xinhua, which claimed Guardiola and his players “lacked enthusiasm” during their five-day stint in China.
Speaking in Hong Kong, where City will face local side Kitchee tonight, the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach said the club had had a positive experience so far during their Asian tour.
“I should say that I don’t agree and I should say that it’s false,” said Guardiola. “To make a statement like this they have to know exactly what is happening within our club.
“The players had an incredible time in Shanghai. They were committed in all the commercials they have to do with the people here in China. The people from the hotel, we take care of all of them with signatures, with pictures. All the people asking something, we are ready to do that.
“So I know we come here (and) it’s a unique experience for us. It’s not easy to come during the season, to come to Asia, a new culture and to go to the restaurants and know the people. It’s amazing to travel and know other people.
“I don’t understand how the people can say that. Maybe this one journalist is a little bit upset, I don’t know why. But it’s far away from what is the reality.”
The article on Xinhua’s English language website accused City, who are part-owned by the Chinese Media Capital consortium, of lack of engagement with local fans and that staff had adopted a dismissive attitude towards the country’s media. “For Manchester City, they saw their recent success as a reason not to treat Chinese and foreigners with the same respect. Above all, it was an orientalist expectation on display by the Manchester City press relations staff that Chinese media would operate as an extension of their PR department, rather than as serious football journalists,” the article stated.
While Guardiola poured scorn on those claims, he admitted the Abu Dhabi-owned outfit lack the experience of other European clubs in relation to overseas tours but that he expected City to return to China in the future.