Having waved goodbye to any slim chance of beating Arsenal to the Premier League title on Tuesday, Manchester City finished the week by bidding an emotional farewell to manager Pep Guardiola, who signed off his 10-year stint with a 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa.
You would be forgiven for expecting a slightly subdued mood at the Etihad given City had lost the title race and their once-in-a-generation leader all in the space of a few days. But Guardiola was not leaving without the send-off he deserved.
Manchester, a city the Spaniard loves and respects for its grafting roots, would not let him.
The Etihad was heartened by the presence of Guardiola on the touchline for one final time. He indulged in the festivities with plenty of smiles and waves, and even tears, albeit he chose not to celebrate Antoine Semenyo’s opener in the 23rd minute, scored from a scrappy set-play.
Hardly vintage Pep-ball.
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Antoine Semenyo steers home Man City’s opener against Villa
But the second half offered more by way of class and quality, predominantly from spoilers Villa. After looking uninterested before the interval, Unai Emery’s Europa League winners sparked into life to score twice in 14 minutes and turn the game on its head.
Ollie Watkins netted both, the second a particularly impressive feat of skill and composure, rounding off a superb week for the World Cup-bound striker, who took his Premier League goal tally to 16.
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Ollie Watkins scores to put Aston Villa in front at the Etihad
Pep’s parade might have been muted, with the ‘oles’ coming from the away end rather than the home crowd, but the locals got what they came to see, the scoreline almost immaterial.
The afternoon included touching tributes to club legends Bernardo Silva and John Stones on their final appearances for the club. In truth, such poignancy rather overtook the football. City failed to land a single shot on target in the second period, while Villa generated five and still missed two big chances to hammer home their advantage.
Teary-eyed John Stones and Bernardo Silva after playing their final game for Man City
Phil Foden did have the ball in the back of the net only to be denied by VAR late on – the defeat marking only the 53rd time Guardiola has lost a game across an entire decade. A quite astonishing record for a truly remarkable manager.
More to follow.
Story of the match in stats
What’s next?
Already thinking about the 2026/27 Premier League season?
There’s a World Cup to fit in first – follow live blogs of every game on the Sky Sports App – but the key dates are locked in for next term, when Sky Sports will once again show at least 215 live Premier League games.
Here’s your summer diary:
June 11: World Cup starts – day-by-day fixture list
June 14: Scotland’s opener vs Haiti (2am)
June 15: Summer transfer window opens
June 17: England’s opener vs Croatia (9pm)
June 19: Premier League fixtures released (10am)
July 19: World Cup final
August 22-23: Premier League opening weekend
August 27: Champions League league phase draw
September 1: Transfer Deadline Day (window closes at 11pm UK time)
September 8-10: Champions League matchday 1
May 30, 2027: Premier League final day
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: skynews.com
