Pep Guardiola was not happy at the way and manner in which Arsenal equalised in Manchester City’s Community Shield game on Sunday and he made it known to the journalists.
The Cityzens were on the verge of winning their fourth title in 2023 when they came up against Arsenal in the Community Shield.
A Cole Palmer goal in the 77th minute of the game looked like it would be the winner and see the treble winners celebrate their first title of the 2023/24 season. However, the new time rules which FIFA introduced at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar last December came into play and every stoppage during the game was accounted for after regulation time. This led to over 11 minutes being added to the game.
Leandro Trossard pulled one back for Arsenal in the 11th additional minute, pushing the game to penalties. Arsenal would pick up the Community Shield, which serves as a consolation for their loss of the 2022/23 Premier League title to Manchester City.
Guardiola praised his players for their performance in the game and also praised his former assistant Mikel Arteta for how he set up his Arsenal side. However, he was unhappy at the number of minutes added to the game and made his feelings known.
It is also understood that all the major leagues in football will adopt the new rules and Guardiola is not happy that the Premier League did not consult the teams before deciding to adopt it.
“We have to accept it. We have to do it,” the Manchester City boss said after the match. “Now we are not going to have 90-minute games. Now the games are going to be 100 minutes, that’s for sure.
“We have to get used to it. I had a feeling – not because we were winning 1-0 – but I had a feeling that there wasn’t much that happened to extend the time added on to eight minutes.
“But it’s a good question for the international board and all the people because they don’t consult with the board, they don’t consult with the managers, they don’t consult with the players for their opinion. So now we are going to see one hundred minutes.
“So in a game that’s 4-3 that’s 45 seconds for the celebrations for each goal. For a game that has seven goals I’ll still be [in a press conference] at 9am the following morning!”
Manchester City have Burnley up next in the curtain raiser of the 2023/24 Premier League season. Then they will prepare for the UEFA Super Cup match against Sevilla, winners of the UEFA Europa League.
