First Time In Over A Decade – I Defend Our Hierarchy by Dan Smith
This is hard for me as I respect Pep Guardiola. He came along when Jose Mourinho and Rafa Benitez were turning the sport into a game of chess.
He was a beauty who beat the beast, teaching us you could be a serial winner while playing football the right way. Yes, he was obsessed with collecting trophies but not at the sake of his values or ethos.
Sir Alex Ferguson once claimed that the true test of a manager isn’t when he’s victorious but how he responds to adversity.
Man City have been respectful of surrendering their title having had a while to process the reality. Clearly, they were relying on their dominance in the domestic cups to continue, as a consolation. By losing on Saturday suddenly it’s ‘win the Champions League or it’s a poor campaign’ by their high standards.
He’s escaped much criticism because his team can be a joy to watch, but he will know the investment at the Etihad means finishing 15 (as I write this) points behind 1st was not expected back in August. He might have been complacent in assuming his worst-case scenario was a cup double.
Because how has he reacted since the weekend?
He’s claimed to not respect our hierarchy. If he made the comments pre-match maybe his words would have credibility but doing it post-match comes across as sour grapes? Would he have brought this up If he had won at Wembley?
Guardiola told Marca: “The opponents always deserve my respect and credit, and Arsenal, they have it,”
“I have all the respect for what Arsenal are on the pitch – not much off the pitch, but on the pitch a lot.
“So I congratulate them and good luck against Chelsea in the final.”
Readers will testify I’m not someone who defends my club just because I’m a Gooner. If this was being aimed at Stan Kroenke I would agree, indeed we are well known at being laughed at by agents for how we negotiate and haggle over every last penny.
To be fair to the Spaniard he didn’t detail specifically how the Gunners have offended him so much, so we are left with theories from the media.
It’s well known that City felt we could have communicated with them when we played them in December, as just hours later, we were having secret meetings with Arteta.
They might have a point, yet given that they had already told their assistant coach they wouldn’t prevent him from leaving, it’s hard to believe that Pep would hold a grudge based on that.
It’s more likely that he feels let down by a group of clubs who he feels put pressure on the Court of Arbitration to block attempts for City’s UEFA ban appeal to be delayed. Etihad officials have long had suspicions that Arsenal may have been the ring leaders in convincing seven other clubs to put pressure on authorities to make the Citizen’s case as complicated as possible.
It’s worth pointing out that Pep always has spoken highly of us, so any grievance towards North London would be recent and he was outspoken last week when his club were reinstated into next season’s Champions League, asking apologies from other managers and owners. Yet if that’s what we are guilty for I will stick up for us for once.
Football is no different to any other business, it’s about making as much money as possible.
If a rival’s punishment happened to benefit us by freeing up a European spot it’s only natural that we would pay lawyers to make sure everything is above board ,to give us the best possible chance of qualifying for the Champions League or Europa League. City would have done the exact same if the roles were reversed.
Having been in the game so long as a player then a coach, Pep is naive to think rivals run by millionaires wouldn’t be checking to see if they could benefit from the then Champions being banned.
It’s worth reminding Pep, his employers were guilty of breaking rules. UEFA decided they had breached FFP rules and CAS agreed. That’s not Arsenal or Liverpool or Chelsea’s fault. We didn’t invent some lie and whispered about it with our peers. We had nothing to do with misleading information about their accounts.
If they hadn’t done anything wrong, they wouldn’t give others a reason to say anything. I’m a huge fan of Pep but with all the sniping he’s been doing since they were ‘only fined’ seems to have confused him. If you’re fined 10 million that means you’re guilty yet he’s acting like it proves his side’s innocence.
For anyone else that’s a sum of money that would make you think your crime was serious. Just because you can afford it doesn’t mean you should shrug it off and it shows how serious City have taken their punishment.
Arsenal haven’t publicly given any opinion on our thoughts, yet his City broke the rules and have to pay millions now and their boss wants us to apologize?
I don’t say this much but our hierarchy have nothing to reproach themselves about …. for once.
Dan Smith
He’s still salty over Arteta, but I stilll wish him to be Arsenal manager in the future
We need a ruthless manager like him to shake the drama queens in the squad and the board. Arteta seems to be following his trait by mercilessly grounding Ozil and Guendouzi
Parts of your narrative are acceptable, but the last part is totally wrong. You cannot justify the attitude of other clubs -Arsenal included- towards MCFC case in the CAS by the fact that they are all after money opportunities. in sports, politics, and business there is something called ethos and principles.
Yes we can, it is absolutely acceptable to call out the Lance Armstrongs of football. If you think coming on here trying to persuade us that you are anything but cheats then you chose the wrong site. We say it how it is and the way it is, is simple, Man City are cheats.
Whether they are cheats or not is not the point. The point is they should have been presumed innocent until proven guilty. It’s the law of the land. Arsenal were 100% wrong to do what they did. You are not saying it how it is at all. City were cleared of fiddling the books. They are innocent of the charge. City stopped cooperating with UEFA when information City had given them was turning up on the back page of the New York Times. Another piece in that paper told us City would be banned by UEFA for two years. This was before the investigation had begun. Outrageously, they were fined 10m Euros for non cooperation. It is not City that are cheating, it is UEFA and the G14 clubs, yours included.
Nah, if I see a murder in front of me then they are guilty even if they get off on a technicality. City is guilty and no matter how much you protest no one is going to accept it. Up to you to live with what every football fan and people involved in the game think or just ignore it and know that your success will forever be tainted. Your club is the Lance Armstrong of football.
I presume a large “untraceable back-hander” swung it for City. A rich club beyond the limits of even some of the riches teams in the world. I mean, City can sponsor themselves with owner money at no specific cap?
I would have banned them for 20 years but money talks, I guess!
Principles and City? in the same conversation?
WTF is going on, on this website? Such drivel should see you condemned to “out” pipe!
My days!!! 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣
It has nothing to do with Arteta. You went to the solicitors and got them to send a letter to CAS trying to pressure them to uphold the ban next season. You were out of order. All the clubs that banded together to do it were.
Arsenal send a letter, Man City cheat. I know which one I am proud of. Win a trophy without an asterisk next to your name and then come back. See you in a 100 years then.
As a club you have consistently complained about City stealing your players AW was always snipping about FFP and now you send a letter to CAS. You were once a great club but have now descended into a whinging organisation who can’t stand that the old order has been disrupted and you are no longer a CL candidate. Get over yourselves and just trust in Arteta to improve your side on the pitch and regain some respect!
You are cheats, you are an asterisk club, nothing you have won will ever count for anything because you cheated. Don’t like that truth then jog off to a Man City site, if you can find one.
Shut up kyke, suck on your BLM club
This Man City racist fan is obviously banned but I am leaving it up so you can see what I am having to deal with from that fan base today.
Wait WTF are city fans doing hete? And how is it everyone keeps pointing Arsenal to be the ring leader? Any proof??
If not, y’all should get some life and stop obsessing about Arsenal you saddos
Lose to Arsenal, twice in a semi final then your coach starts yapping
Pardon me for using the offensive words AdMartin, but it’s just annoying the comments I’m reading
I have edited it Eddie, please do not make my life harder mate with that sort of language. You have no idea how much abuse I am having to deal with daily, I do not need it from our own members mate.
Lol, Admin! I feel for you but us Gunners tend to swing from the hip at these muppets without thinking!
Opps, did I just?..
As a city fan we was not fined for breaking ffp it was because we wouldn’t cooperate with uefa because what was the point uefa was going to find us guilty with alleged documents illegally obtained plus when u have David Gill (man utd) and Rick parry ( liverpool) on the board who found us guilty no matter what we had done we would of been punished people need to read the facts 1st before critics us
You need to read the facts actually. You got off on a technicality because most of the cheating was time-barred. You may not be used to it supporting City but we are an intelligent bunch here and know full well why City escaped. Get some humility, accept you escaped being caught and go away quietly.
why are u all so bitter against city , we are not cheats been found “NOT GUILTY” WHY CANT U UNDERSTAND THAT .your club is a hasbin club you won’t win Premier league ever again 100% admin Martin needs to button up what a muppet
LOL – Another one banned, this is quite enjoyable today. They really have not taken it well being schooled in the FA Cup semi-final and it is has been, get an education.
Not guilty doesn’t mean innocent!!just saying!
Wow this is just wonderful. What re city’s fan doing here in just arsenal??
They are responding to an article we have published and I have no issue with that as long as it is not abusive or in come cases, sadly, racist.
The true reasons behind CAS exonerating City are yet to be given, but many seem to be hanging their hat on City still being guilty, as some of the allegations were time-barred. However, it must also be said that time-barred or not, they remain allegations. So even if they would have been considered, there is nothing anywhere that says City would’ve been found guilty of them, by CAS.
The fine you ask? That is for non-compliance with UEFA, but when you listen to what City say about that, they have a point. Up to a certain time, City produced and complied with requests, until things started leaking to the press; one in particular. CAS in their own words at the time reported this as “troubling”. Conspiracy theory it maybe and without naming them, some simple research, can find you credible links between UEFA, the paper in question, a fairly well known “reporter” for that paper and a former board member of a leading Premier League club. No less conspiratorial than the time-barred allegations.
What galls City fans is a total lack of balance and fair reporting on this subject in the press. Bar one journalist in The Mail, everyone else from the broadsheets to tabloids to podcasts to the glorified bloggers have set the tone for Joe Public. And why? Do you think it not beyond the realms of possibility that producing reports on how City have been badly treated would not attract as much traffic/clicks on websites, than reports on City being guilty? This is what the mainstream media is now. Gone are the days of balanced reporting, it is all about the clicks to garner revenue.
And this in turn influences what you, me and everyone else, think.
Us City fans don’t want you to like us, we don’t care to be honest. Like most fans when their club is backed into a corner, they come out fighting. Tribalism pure and simple.
We also understand that regardless of what CAS say, most opposition fans will still go with their own blinkered views and what they want to believe. Again, City fans would likely do the same.
However, what we want is someone…anyone, to have a good look as to why City have yet again been targeted by UEFA, who you must admit, haven’t covered themselves in glory, nor are they the bastions of all that is good about football.
Because most City fans (and the club) firmly believe there are certain clubs who are complicit in forcing UEFA to “do something” about City, as them taking a Champions League place, has serious financial implications for a very small number of those teams.
On FFP, Platini initially said at the outset that all aspects of finance, including debt, would be considered. Shortly after that, things changed to the current set up we have in place. Ever wonder why and who changed his mind?
Do you think United being hundreds of millions in debt, yet still able to compete in the transfer market, is financially fair?
Do you think Barcelona about to take on a £800m loan, which will total over £1bn when paid back, financially fair? Despite also being in debt already?
Indeed, Barca and Madrid have also been financially aided by the Spanish government on a few occasions. Again…fair?
If City did the same, would fans of all other clubs be up in arms? You bet they would. Yet here City are, zero debt, worth over £2bn and we are being depicted worldwide, by uninformed and ignorant media hacks as the bad guys! Really?!?!?!?
One last thing, if you get this far…there are two sides to every story would you not agree? Also, in this country you are innocent until proven guilty? What we ask is that even if you think after reading this, “yeah but City are guilty”, do some research and put yourselves in City’s shoes. Forget about what the media are telling you and have a look at it from City’s perspective. Then and only then will you have a more balanced understanding of what is going on.
Cheers
Admin Martin – I disagree with most of what has been written, however, I have decided to allow this comment to go forward from a Man City fan on JustArsenal under the banner of the right to reply. We are not scared on here to debate opposition fans, especially if we publish an article that directly attacks their club.
Let’s try and keep this debate clean people and well mannered.
Admin Martin, I appreciated being able to read this well argued response from the very articulate City Blue.
There are many Manchester City fans who have steadfastly followed their club through thick and thin, up and down the football divisions over many years. They are now experiencing highs after many seasons of lows far worse than any Arsenal supporter has experienced and had to share Manchester with that other very successful club.
A reasonable person can see why they gleefully accept this success after so many seasons of gloom, no matter how it is achieved.
As for Pep Guardiola’s view of the Arsenal Board and senior executive, mine is the same but for the reasons that they have mismanaged the player and financial assets of this great Club.
I think that’s where we differ as a club/fans.. success yes!at all costs no! as mentioned by adm Martin,what about integrity,fair play,class….?are we losing the sense of values we once were so proud of?the Arsenal way!
Siamois, there are certain events in the history of the Arsenal, which don’t pass scrutiny as far as “integrity, fair play, class”. Not defending Manchester City, but there aren’t too many clubs without skeletons in the closet.
I can’t remember admin in one post having to.so quickly warn that amount of people for their Lang
Your fans have let you down mate
Ironic as we are talking about integrity
I’m shocked Man City fans existed lol
Much as I respect Pep for his wonderful achievements as a Professional Football Manager, he was wrong to criticise our Hierarchy when he knew perfectly well that they, as a body of men, we’re not in a position to respond to him in a public forum.He has acted like a boxer who lands the first lunch and then leaves the ring.I am not particularly interested in the financial dealings of Man City FC , who before the advent of “Oil money” we’re a very well respected, if not hugely successful team who operated in the shadow of their more illustrious neighbour.The fact remains it was Man City FC who were cited by the authorities, and it is their hierarchy who need to apologize to their fans for putting their Club into a situation of disrepute.
this is like the ncaA saying there is nothing wrong with college sport in the
US.
uefa fifa fa all are corrupt!