Members of Pep Guardiola’s ‘entourage’ reveal true feeling of Manchester City manager towards fans’ banner | OneFootball

Manchester City’s manager Pep Guardiola was left “delighted” by the banner unveiled by supporters at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon, according to a club insider.

In conjunction with independent Manchester City podcast, Ninety Three Twenty, supporters collective, The 1894 Group raised over £1,000 in less than 24 hours to fund a banner issuing a clear message to Pep Guardiola regarding his future at the football club.

Unveiled ahead of kick-off in Manchester City’s eventual 3-2 win over Fulham in the Premier League, the message read “Pep Guardiola: We Want You To Stay!!!” whilst the wording was accompanied by a pair of Catalan independence flags.

Guardiola insisted prior to the contest during his pre-match press conference that he would like to cover the costs of the banner himself, despite being hugely appreciative of the gesture from Manchester City supporters.

“They have to bring me the bill; I will pay for the banner! I don’t want them to spend money for that reason,” Guardiola said. However it is now understood that the 54-year-old was left emotional by the message sent to him by the fans.

According to the information of Manchester City insider ‘Tolmie’s Hairdoo’ on X, members of Pep Guardiola’s ‘entourage’ have now revealed that the Etihad Stadium manager was left “delighted” with the banner produced by The 1894 Group.

It is further explained that the Manchester City manager particularly “loved” the Catalan independence flags which accompanied the message from supporters pleading for him to remain at the club beyond the end of the ongoing season.

Speaking to reporters after the game on whether he feels the love from Manchester City’s supporter base at the Etihad Stadium, Guardiola showed no hesitation in explaining, “From day one, yeah. Definitely.

“The gratitude is immense, otherwise I would not be nine years here, it’s impossible. Of course results help. In modern football, when you don’t win they sack you, we know. They were happy to extend because we won. This is a business. It has to be like that.

“But apart from that, there are many details, many experiences I lived in these many years, daily, during games, not during games that made me feel part of this club deeply, deeply.”

At present, it remains unknown as to whether Pep Guardiola will opt to remain at Manchester City beyond the end of the ongoing season, with his contract expiring in the summer of 2025, causing complications around the FIFA Club World Cup in particular.