Pep Guardiola said he did not want to “take the very serious issue of self-harm lightly” with an apparent joke about scratches on his face and a cut on his nose after Manchester City’s extraordinary collapse against Feyenoord.
Guardiola sported the injuries after repeatedly flailing his face during Tuesday night’s 3-3 Champions League draw, in which his side led 3-0 with 15 minutes remaining.
Asked about the marks during his post-match press conference, he replied: “I want to hurt myself”, before leaving the room.
On Wednesday morning, Guardiola clarified his comments in a statement on Instagram: “I was caught off guard by a question at the end of a press conference last night about a scratch that had appeared on my face and I I explained that a sharp nail accidentally caused this.
“My response was in no way intended to make light of the very serious issue of self-harm. I know many people struggle with mental health issues every day, and I would like to take this moment to highlight one of the ways we can [which] People can seek help by calling the Samaritans hotline on 116 123 or emailing jo@samaritans.org.
“Fans have the right to express themselves by booing”
City fans reacted to Tuesday’s draw – which dealt a further blow to the club’s hopes of automatic qualification for the Champions League last 16 – by booing the team at the final whistle.
The result extended City’s winless streak to six matches ahead of Sunday’s trip to Premier League leaders Liverpool, and Guardiola said he had no complaints about the fans’ behavior.
“During the last match against Tottenham, 0-4, the supporters were there, applauding. They are of course disappointed and we understand that,” said the city manager. “People don’t come here to remember past successes, they come here to see the team win and perform well. I’m not the one when the situation is bad or good [to say] what they should do.
“These fans, when we go, our fans are incredible, travel. There is nothing that can be done and they are right to express how they feel.
City have conceded 13 goals in their last four matches and Guardiola said they are now ready to face a difficult season ahead. “It will be a difficult season for us and we have to accept it in many circumstances,” he said.
Josko Gvardiol made errors on Feyenoord’s first two goals after an error-strewn display against Spurs, and Guardiola said the 22-year-old Croatian defender would need treatment at that point.
“He’s so young, he’s going to learn. It will be a good experience,” Guardiola said. “The way he played – he was the best player on the pitch – but I will be really wrong if I point out one specific element of our defeat. He is young and he will learn. He’s a fantastic player, a fantastic boy and now more than ever we need to help him.
“Weak, fragile, an absolute disaster”: Shearer elicits stunned reactions
How the football world reacted to City’s capitulation
Shearer: They look weak, they look light, they look fragile
“Through stupid mistakes, lapses in concentration and inviting the opposition back into the game. City were in such a comfortable position, it’s all their fault. [They were] cruise.
“Conceding like they did at the weekend, three more tonight. They look weak, they look light, they look fragile. They are giving the opposition too many chances. They were sailing halfway through this match. Whatever you do, you can’t give the opposition chances, give them some hope and that’s exactly what they did.
“Even when they were winning 3-2 with two minutes to go, they tried to take a quick free kick. For what? Kill the game. They were winning the game, there’s no reason to do that, just sit on the ball. The game management was horrible and they were punished. It was an absolute disaster for them tonight after being in such a comfortable position.
Andros Townsend: Comic Defense
“I am at a loss for words. It wasn’t vintage Manchester City but they were on a cruise. It was a comical defensive error from Josko Gvardiol that allowed Feyenoord back into the game and they capitulated. Gvardiol then gave the ball away for the second goal.
“For the third goal, no need to play the high line when we are one minute away from a first victory in six matches.
“In the end, all that hard work from City is undone, and the pressure mounts even more ahead of the Premier League match against Liverpool.”
Stuart Pearce: Liverpool will rub their hands
“It will feel like a defeat. I don’t know what the City dressing room will be like there, but they will take it as a defeat, there’s no doubt about it. Pretty incredible.
“Liverpool will be rubbing their hands, especially in the way they play, [Mohamed] Salah goes behind, [Luis] Díaz – the runs they make with and without the ball, I think they will look at that and think “this must be our tactic”, this is the way they play.
Gaël Clichy: We saw the same errors
“I am at a loss for words. You can play the game again, we can talk about what just happened, but you win games and you lose games in both boxes. In the future you have to be creative and give them freedom, but defensively there are things that are just rules for defenders and make defending difficult. If there’s no pressure on the ball, you can’t have your line flat that high – you can do it if that’s your philosophy, but you have to make sure you have the legs to cover.
“We saw all the details we talked about before the match happened, those details and those mistakes happened in the match. So after a very comfortable match, 3-0, everyone goes home thinking about the Liverpool game, well you find yourself in a situation where you haven’t lost the game but it will feel like a defeat.
“To save our season we must beat Liverpool”
Ilkay Gundogan challenged City to “stay humble” to save their season with victory over Liverpool this weekend.
In a phrase reminiscent of Erling Haaland’s provocative “stay humble” comment to Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta following an ill-tempered draw between the teams in September, Gundogan was attempting to rally the troops after the collapse spectacular against Feyenoord.
City’s self-destruction has increased rumors of a team in decline, making this weekend’s trip to league leaders Liverpool. The reigning champions have not won any of their last six matches and will fall 11 points behind Arne Slot’s men if they lose on Sunday.
“Anfield is always difficult, whatever the situation,” said Gundogan, who returned from Barcelona to find a very different City team to the all-conquering one he left.
“We’ve had a hard time the last few years getting there. We know that Liverpool are a great team right now full of confidence. This is going to be as difficult as possible. But that sums up the current situation.
“It seems like we have to get through this season as hard as possible. Obviously we did it a little bit ourselves, but hopefully we can get out of it as quickly as possible, especially in such an important game.
“It would give us a boost to perform well and then obviously to get something out of the match. This is how we will approach the game.
“Staying in the title race probably yes [we have to win]because 11 points would be a huge gap. It’s still early in the season. There are still a lot of games to play and a lot of things can happen, but obviously we have to look at ourselves and try to do the things that we can do better, as quickly as possible.
“We take it, stay humble, head down and try to work in the next few days and prepare as best as possible for a tough match.”
Gundogan, however, admitted that City’s players are suffering in a way most of them have never experienced before, with the shock of losing a three-goal lead on Tuesday night the latest blow to confidence .
“Right now it’s more difficult [than we have known]“, he added. “The match against Feyenoord looks like a defeat. If we lost 2-0 at home, obviously we would be disappointed, but the way we did it… could only have been worse if we had conceded a fourth goal and lost the game.
“The current feeling, if I’m honest, is a big disappointment. Football creates difficult moments that must be faced. You only get through it when you face it, accept it, are challenged and try your best to get out of that situation as quickly as possible.