Manchester City manager Josep Guardiola has refused to discuss his rivalry with Arsenal at a time when “the world is falling apart”.
Published March 20, 2026
Ahead of Sunday’s English League Cup final between Manchester City and Arsenal, manager Josep Guardiola was given the opportunity to engage in a pre-match battle of wits with rival manager Mikel Arteta.
He didn’t bite.
Recommended stories
list of 4 itemsend of list
“Let’s look at what’s happening around the world,” Guardiola said on Friday. “We are in an incredible mess and no one is lifting a finger. Everything is happening behind the scenes. The world is falling apart and we are still here talking about the dark arts.”
Guardiola’s reference to the “dark arts” was reminiscent of a flashpoint between the teams following a Premier League match in September 2024, after Arsenal’s tactics drew criticism from many City players following a 2-2 draw.
Midfielder Bernardo Silva said Arsenal’s players had pushed the “boundaries of what can be done”. Defender John Stones said they “break up the game, disrupting the rhythm”. Full-back Kyle Walker, who is no longer at City, described Arsenal’s tactics as a “dark art”.
In response to these comments, Arteta gave a rather cryptic response, saying he knew “all the information” about City, having served as Guardiola’s assistant between 2016 and 2019.
Guardiola asked Arteta to “make more clear what he means”.
A year and a half later, Guardiola was in no mood to reignite that debate.
“There are officials who deal with this kind of thing,” he said.
Indeed, City’s manager praised Arsenal’s progress and “cohesiveness” as they finished this season at the top of the Premier League with a nine-point lead as they cruised to four trophies and reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League and FA Cup.
“It’s a great team,” he said. “It’s a big challenge for us to see what level we are at.”
Arteta said his relationship with Guardiola “had to change” as he was in charge of a team that had become a big rival.
“But it will never change what I feel about him, the time we spent together and what he did for me – he has inspired me since I was very young,” Arteta said.
