At 1.10pm on Wednesday, Pep Guardiola reattached his colours to the mast. Such a show of loyalty was remarkably ballsy at a point when Manchester City are at risk of emulating the Titanic.
One can only imagine the thought processes that went into his 57-word missive, posted on his social media channels. Or the wisdom behind it. But his position of loyalty is now clear, which is to say it remains resolutely unchanged, even when everything else has shifted beyond recognition.
The Premier League’s confirmation on Tuesday afternoon that City were guilty of the worst acts of cheating ever seen in British sport has irrevocably altered how we view them – and how we view the managers who benefited from it. None more so than Guardiola.
There is no suggestion that he knew what was going on above him, but there is even less doubt that his legacy, his achievements, are tethered to those who apparently held such an egregious lack of regard for the rules of engagement. If the ship sinks following the appeals process, Guardiola’s reputation will get wet.
With that in mind, we might have expected more than 57 words. We might have expected some temperance, some questions of his own, some room for doubt now that a tangible verdict has finally been delivered.
But this is what we got: ‘I want every single Manchester City fan to know I am here; more than ever. I am, always have been, always will, be behind my club, my owner, my chairman, Ferran (Soriano, CEO), the players, staff, Enzo (Maresca) and you, our unique supporters. Let me be clear: we will get through this together. I love you all.’
Pep Guardiola cosies up to Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak after lifting yet another title
The credibility of Guardiola’s achievements has been smashed into 114 pieces and the former City manager could be viewed as a victim
Accompanying the love letter were four pictures. In one, we see him in an embrace with City’s chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak. And there’s another of his celebrations with the Champions League trophy, as well as his farewell ovation on the pitch of the Etihad Stadium last summer.
Finally, there’s a group shot with Soriano, Al Mubarak and Txiki Begiristain, the director of football who brought Guardiola to the club.
Collectively, they built and shaped an empire; individually they have evidently said enough about irrefutable evidence and conspiracies to reduce the great Guardiola into the role of a trusting submissive. My owner. My chairman. Oh my word.
Guardiola once said he would walk away if City’s version of the truth proved to be a pack of lies, and we can only assume he took the time to read Tuesday’s verdict. If he had, he will have noticed the most damning lines about ‘sham’ deals and witnesses who gave evidence ‘they knew to be untrue and so had been dishonest’.
Maybe City will be exonerated in time. And perhaps our memories of Guardiola’s beautiful football and his accomplishments will be restored.
But as we view them today, their credibility has been smashed into 114 pieces and Guardiola could be perceived as a victim.
Many of us will still see him that way if the verdict holds, because he has so much to lose from the actions of others. Those asterisks will be Guardiola’s asterisks, irrespective of who was responsible.
Any defensive instinct towards Guardiola might also be reduced by his desire to keep his head in the sand
City’s hierarchy including chairman Al Mubarak (left) and CEO Ferran Soriano (second right) are clearly persuasive behind the scenes
But any defensive instinct towards one of football’s most spellbinding thinkers might also be reduced by his desire to keep his head in the sand. By his stubborn, ongoing refusal to countenance that he, like the rest of us, has been duped by cheats.
This being the Guardiola of high ideals, that is jarring. Impulsive on occasion but always deliberate, he has rarely obeyed that strange demand of sporting figures to stay in his lane – he spoke earlier this year about the ‘genocide in Palestine’, and humanitarian crises in Ukraine and Sudan.
He makes his own mind up on a topic and shares it. Obviously he feels he has heard enough to be convinced about City’s position.
But it is astonishing that his credulity has survived Tuesday’s announcement from the Premier League. It is extraordinary that his sense of certainty has not budged by even an inch. Because this was no close battle. This was no verdict that left itself vulnerable to semantics. This was no fight where both boxers greet the final bell with arms raised.
No, City were dealt a hiding. It was a mauling. The iceberg won.
If City lose their appeal, that much will be utterly irrefutable, barring the conspiratorial ravings of the defeated. It would only compound the shame further if Guardiola was still part of their deluded chorus.
