Pep Guardiola Ignores Old Promise With Bold Message on Man City Charges

Pep Guardiola is nothing if not stubbornly loyal. The trophy-laden former Manchester City manager has belatedly responded to the official confirmation that the club have been found guilty of more than 100 breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations by reiterating his staunch support of the entire administration. Even though that’s not what he had formerly promised.

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It was confirmed on Tuesday that City had arranged “sham contracts,” “sham commercial agreements” and other “sham arrangements” during nine seasons of sophisticated, deliberate and constantly evolving deception. Guardiola’s tenure at the Etihad encompassed the last two campaigns which were reviewed in this investigation (2016–18), during which time City won the Premier League title with an unprecedented 100 points.

However, his entire managerial career in England has been tainted by this revelation that the players he had under his remit were bought with revenues allowed by a “disguised funding scheme.”

City have responded forcefully to these findings, insisting that they have “a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence” to prove their “innocence.” Guardiola wasn’t so sharp-tongued with his statement, but remained defiantly behind a club he managed for a decade.

“I want every single Man City fan to know I am here; more than ever,” Guardiola, who was made a Global Ambassador for City Football Group (CFG) over the summer, wrote on X.

“I am, always have been, always will, be behind my club, my owner, my chairman, Ferran [Soriano], the players, staff, Enzo [Maresca] and you, our unique supporters. Let me be clear: we will get through this together. I love you all.”

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Why Guardiola ‘Trusts’ Man City’s Owners in the Face of Everything

“The consequences City are staring down look stark.”

Manchester City could face a range of punishments over the 115 Premier League charges. From financial penalties and points deductions to suspension, expulsion and potentially even the stripping of titles.

Sports Illustrated… pic.twitter.com/BU5ksJAzt2

– Sports Illustrated FC (@SI_FootballClub) September 25, 2026

Back in May 2022, after City had successfully overturned a two-year ban following UEFA’s investigation into similar breaches over the same period, Guardiola explained that his repeated defense of the club came from his faith in the powerbrokers who had made a convincing case.

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“Why did I defend the club and the people? It’s because I work with them,” the Catalan coach outlined. “When they are accused of something I ask them: ‘Tell me about that.’ They explain and I believe them.”

However, were these claims ever proven to be false, Guardiola promised to swiftly change their tune: “I said to them: ‘If you lie to me, the day after I am not here. I will be out and I will not be your friend any more. I put my faith in you because I believe you 100% from day one and I defend the club because of that.'”

The independent commission explicitly described certain witnesses as “dishonest” during their testimony. The conclusion could not have been more explicit. Premier League chief executive Richard Masters insisted City “systematically broke Premier League Rules for nearly a decade.”

In the face of everything, however, Guardiola has continued to stand with City.

How Involved Was Pep Guardiola in Man City’s Deception?

One of the key points Guardiola often returned to was his dissociation with the period of events. City’s breaches regarding financial reporting occurred between the 2009–10 and 2017–18 seasons-Guardiola joined in the summer of 2016, as he was keen to point out.

“It’s a situation in 2012 or 2013, I was still in Barcelona, most of the people running that are not here now,” he has previously argued.

However, putting aside the impact that City’s indiscretions had on the seasons after the investigation’s remit, Guardiola’s ‘Centurions’ were constructed with funds that the club should not have had access to. Across the Catalan coach’s first two campaigns, City recorded more than £286 million ($380 million at current rates) in sponsorship. However, the independent commission has claimed that £264 million ($351 million-or 92%) of that money was actually injected by City themselves.

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