Manchester City supporters have always felt a discord with the Champions League, but is Pep about to change that?
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has called on the club’s fans to stop booing the Champions League anthem and to fill the Etihad on European nights, speaking to Sky Sports.
City fans have protested against governing body UEFA for years, and their apathy towards the tournament was once again reflected by a 30,270 attendance for Wednesday’s clash with Borussia Monchengladbach.
Speaking with Sky Sports, Guardiola said: “I was not here for what happened but they must forget what happened in the past. We have to be so proud to play in this competition. I am going to work until the last moment to convince the people to come here to join us to see the Champions League games.”
The origins of City’s ongoing feud with UEFA stem from 2012, when FC Porto were fined just €20,000 for racially abusing then-City striker Mario Balotelli in the Europa League. The Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, introduced by Michel Platini in 2011, were also seen as a measure to halt City’s progress.
Finally, City supporters were enraged by their exclusion from attending a clash with CSKA Moscow, despite the Russian club being found guilty of crowd disturbances. The club have since voiced their anger at the governing body, choosing to repeatedly boo the anthem before games.
Guardiola has long had a fond relationship with the competition having reached the semi-finals in each of his seven seasons as a manager, lifting the trophy on two occasions with Barcelona in 2009 and 2011.
The club’s next European home game is to welcome the Catalan giants, and Guardiola hopes the Etihad will be packed for the visit of his former side.
“Our players deserve the stadium completely full and hopefully against Barcelona and Celtic it is going to happen,” he insisted.
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