April 16, (THEWILL) – Pep Guardiola has denounced the fans who broke the minute’s silence held at Wembley Stadium in honour of the 97 Hillsborough fans that died in the catastrophe. He made it clear that these supporters do not represent Manchester City.
When chanting broke out in the City end, referee Michael Oliver had to cut short the planned period of remembrance, prompting boos from Liverpool supporters.
Prior to the FA Cup semi-final, which Liverpool won 3-2 courtesy to two goals from Sadio Mane, Manchester City issued a statement apologising to Liverpool for the behaviour of their fans.
The statement read: “Manchester City are extremely disappointed with the actions of some City supporters during the minute’s silence before today’s game. The club sincerely apologises to all those connected with Liverpool Football Club.”
When asked about the antics of City’s fans after the game, Guardiola categorically criticised the behaviour, stressing that the fans involved do not represent the club.
“Absolutely. The club made a statement, the (fans) don’t represent who we want to be. We are close to Liverpool who went through this tragedy and I think the statement from the club represents who we are,” Guardiola said.
The match itself was another high-octane affair, with Liverpool eventually winning despite a late City comeback in the second half, as THEWILL reported.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
