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Rob dawsonCorrespondent
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says he doesn’t have much respect for Arsenal’s behavior off the field.
City chiefs have been frustrated with part of Arsenal’s conduct this season, first in their approach to Mikel Arteta in December and also in their alleged role in a letter from Premier League rivals to the Court of Arbitration for Sport during his appeal during the two-year European ban imposed by UEFA.
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Arsenal beat City in their FA Cup semifinal on Saturday, and although Guardiola says he likes Arteta’s team, he did not take a hit on his assessment of other areas of the club from his former assistant.
“After we were beaten, we shook hands,” Guardiola said at a press conference on Monday.
“Opponents always deserve my respect and credit. And Arsenal, I have all the respect for what they are on the court, not much off the court, but on the court a lot. Congratulations and good luck in the final.”
City will look to bounce back from their loss to Arsenal when they visit Watford on Tuesday in their penultimate game of the Premier League season.
They end their season with a home game against Norwich already relegated on Sunday before a Champions League date with Real Madrid on August 7 and, despite having nothing to play for in the league, Guardiola does not want that your players give up.
“Watford and Norwich can beat us, but I want us to be who we are,” Guardiola said.
“Our game, who we are, with and without the ball, we are good when we go full throttle, without fear, no matter what happens and we play. That is what we have to get out of these two games.”
“I said that after Arsenal, we didn’t play the first half against Arsenal as the second. That was the only regret. We wanted to play 90 minutes as the second half.”
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