Home FA Cup Pep Guardiola hits back at critics for FA Cup accusation

Pep Guardiola hits back at critics for FA Cup accusation

April 19, 2021

Man City was knocked out of the FA Cup semi-final by Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea.

Pep Guardiola was accused of disrespecting the FA Cup when he made eight changes to his side after beating Borussia Dortmund in midweek.

City’s hope of winning a quadruple by Hakim Ziyech who scored the winning goal in the FA Cup semi-final.

‘Do you think we don’t pay attention to the game?’ said Guardiola, in a passionate defence of his team and their efforts this season.

‘Do you think Sterling or Ferran Torres or Gabriel Jesus don’t deserve to play the game? I don’t think that we didn’t pay attention. A team that arrives in the final stages of all competitions, you couldn’t say that. Just say we lost the game. And when you lost the game, the decisions are bad. But it is a poor argument, my friends, it is so poor an argument.

‘We wouldn’t get to the semi-final of the FA Cup or the final of the Carabao Cup four times in a row and semi-final of the Champions League if we don’t pay attention. We had many, many games with this team in the FA Cup over four or five years and we always play to try to win.

‘It was a tight game. We were not able to win. Congratulations Chelsea. Chelsea is a top side. With the amount of new players that came to Chelsea this season, this can happen.

‘But if you don’t believe we don’t pay attention for that, what would happen if the result today was completely different and we win? What happens? With eight changes?’

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