Manchester City negotiate friendly match against La Liga giants commemorating 125th anniversary | OneFootball

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City Xtra

·29 March 2023

Manchester City negotiate friendly match against La Liga giants commemorating 125th anniversary

Article image:Manchester City negotiate friendly match against La Liga giants commemorating 125th anniversary

Pep Guardiola and his Manchester City players could once again be on their way to Spain this summer to participate in a friendly match against La Liga opposition.

In August 2022, Manchester City travelled to the Camp Nou to take on FC Barcelona shortly after the start of the ongoing Premier League season, participating in a game played to fund raise for ALS.


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City levelled in added time to secure a 3-3 draw with the La Liga giants in an entertaining friendly. Julian Alvarez opened the scoring, before Xavi’s side hit back through Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and then went ahead through Frenkie de Jong.

Cole Palmer equalised for City late on in the contest, before Memphis Depay put Barcelona ahead once again. However, a late Riyad Mahrez penalty levelled the scoring one final time in front of a bumper crowd in excess of 92,000.

Now, Manchester City could be set for a return to Spain in and around the same time as last year’s friendly, with another La Liga club eyeing up the possibility of hosting the Premier League champions for a friendly match of their own.

That is according to the information of Jose Manuel Monje for Onda Vasca, who reports that Athletic Bilbao are negotiating with Manchester City over a possible friendly match between the two sides at the San Mamés in August.

The game would be to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the La Liga club being founded back in 1898.

From the viewpoint of those within the Etihad Stadium, it is revealed that both Pep Guardiola and Manchester City themselves see the possibility of a commemorative friendly match against Athletic Bilbao “with very good eyes”.

However, it is highlighted that the only problem is the possibility of the Basque club participating in the UEFA Conference League at the same time, with Ernesto Valverde’s side currently sitting just five points adrift from the qualification berth in the La Liga table.

Manchester City’s pre-season plans have already been mooted in various quarters ahead of the conclusion of the ongoing 2022/23 season, with a one-off friendly match in India having been discussed by one source.

However, the most likely scenario remains that Pep Guardiola and his players will pay a visit to Asia as part of their preparations for the 2023/24 season, with both Japan and Thailand eyed for a summer tour.

City supporters from all over the globe eagerly await pre-season plans as new kits for the forthcoming season are usually shown off for the first time, as well as new signings for Pep Guardiola’s blockbuster squad.

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