Pep Guardiola accuses referees of unfair treatment over the past decade

Pep Guardiola expressed frustration, claiming Man City has been treated unfairly by referees for ten years, despite the team recently winning 3-1 against Bournemouth at Etihad.

Although Manchester City secured a 3-1 victory over Bournemouth in last weekend’s match at Etihad, coach Pep Guardiola could not hide his dissatisfaction with the refereeing. The Spanish manager stated that his team has faced unfair treatment from referees throughout nearly a decade of his tenure in England.

“I’m not the type of coach who calls referees to complain. But it’s hard to stay silent when it happens so often. I know the referees well; this has been going on for a decade. I understand how things operate on this pitch. Today, they showed their ‘bravery’ again at Etihad,” Pep Guardiola said after the match.

The 54-year-old coach also revealed he spoke with the main referee Anthony Taylor after the game: “I just said, when you have time, please review that incident and tell me if it was a foul or not. I don’t have time to argue or complain, but I want to know the truth.”

Pep Guardiola believes such unfavorable decisions are not the first to occur in Man City’s matches. However, he emphasized that his team remains proud of their achievements despite “all the difficulties and unfairness.” “I am happy with what Man City has accomplished, even facing many obstacles. That makes our titles even more valuable,” he stressed.

On the other side, Bournemouth’s coach Andoni Iraola holds a different view.

“Referees nowadays don’t call fouls for minor contacts with the goalkeeper. We follow other teams by applying pressure inside the 5.5-meter area. Many goals from corners come from situations like that. I don’t think there was a foul today,” Iraola told BBC Radio 5 Live.

The 3-1 win allowed Man City to overtake Bournemouth and temporarily move up to second place in the Premier League table. However, Pep Guardiola’s team still trails Arsenal by 6 points after the “Gunners” defeated Burnley 2-0.