Manchester City manager insists he has freedom to express himself
Pep Guardiola has refused to stay silent on the issue of global conflicts, including the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, despite a Jewish Group in Manchester hitting back at the 55-year-old’s comments.
Guardiola skipped a pre-game press conference last week to attend and speak at a rally in Barcelona, before further expressing himself in another pre-game presser this week. City’s manager condemned the killings of innocent people in Gaza, Sudan and the US.
“I didn’t say anything special,” Guardiola said. “I don’t feel that. Why should I not express what I feel just because I’m a manager. I don’t agree but I respect all opinions.
“What I said basically is how many conflicts there are right now all around the world. I condemn all of them. If innocent people are killed, I condemn them all – not this country being more than the other one.”
In a statement posted on social media, the Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester & Region accused Guardiola of engaging in talk that could bring harm to Jewish people, and said Manchester City was “being let down” by the coach commenting on international affairs.
“We have repeatedly asked for prominent individuals to be mindful about the words they use given how Jewish people have had to endure attacks across the globe,” the organisation said.
“Pep Guardiola is a football manager. Whilst his humanitarian reflections may be well-intentioned, he should focus on football. This is the second time in a week he has decided to offer his controversial views on the Middle East conflict.
“It’s especially galling given his total failure to use his significant platform to display any solidarity with the Jewish community subjected to a terrorist attack a few miles from the Etihad Stadium or the Barcelona community reeling from anti-Semitic violence close to where he once engaged in remarks we believe to be provocative.”
