Michael Jordan pays tribute to Pep Guardiola as Man City manager bids farewell | Football News

Former basketball star Michael Jordan paid tribute to Pep Guardiola as the outgoing Manchester City manager was sent off on a bus trip and after a contract announcement party with one of the club’s top players.

After a parade through the streets of Manchester on Monday, a crowd of 19,000 sold out inside the Co-op Live stadium near City’s Etihad Stadium saw a video message from Jordan to Guardiola on the big screen.

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“Hey, Pep, this is Michael Jordan,” the six-year National Basketball Association (NBA) star said. “I want to thank you for a job well done. Enjoy your break.

“Very good on the links,” added Jordan, acknowledging Guardiola’s style of golf, “and controlling them.”

Guardiola he is leaving after a decade in charge of City, during which he won 17 major trophies.

Former City captain Vincent Kompany, current Bayern Munich coach, and Noel Gallagher of Britpop group Oasis attended the event. It was organized to celebrate the domestic cup double for the men’s team as well as the Women’s Super League and FA Youth Cup wins.

In the part of the show dedicated to the women’s team, record scorer Khadija “Bunny” Shaw announced on stage that she had signed a new four-year contract with City, dispelling speculation about a move to Chelsea.

Shaw has already been with City for five years.

Also speaking on stage was striker Erling Haaland, who said he was determined to ensure City’s success did not end with the departure of Guardiola and veterans Bernardo Silva and John Stones.

“It’s been an up and down season,” Haaland said, “but we’ll try to keep going and try to fight to win the biggest trophies we can.

“It’s been great playing with Bernardo and John, and with Pep. It’s been an amazing journey, but we have to keep pushing and fighting even without them.”

Guardiola was invited to speak after all 20 trophies won during his reign were lifted by players, coaches and figures connected to the club, including Gallagher.

‘You’ve been lucky’

Other former players in attendance were Fernandinho and Jack Grealish, a member of the treble-winning 2023 team who spent last year on loan at Everton.

“Thank you very much for coming here tonight to say goodbye,” Guardiola said. “I’ve felt the connection this club (has) from the first minute.

“Thank you so much. I can’t thank you enough. I will have (that) for the rest of my life.”

During City’s final game under his leadership on Sunday, Guardiola spoke deeply about the relationship he has built with the players, staff, fans and the city. One of the most poignant moments came when he spoke of how proud he was to be with his 95-year-old father, Valentin, at a game at the Etihad.

“Imagine as a father, 95 years old, to feel how much these people love their son,” Guardiola said. “This has been good for me, to give my father things like that.”

The intergenerational romance continued when her daughter, Maria, shared her love story on social media.

“A few years from now people will be talking about football and trying to explain how that time was, they are talking about your teams, how they feel about people. Because beyond the trophies, you gave us memories of what we escaped from real life,” he said in a post on Instagram.

“I have had the great privilege of seeing you and helping you for almost 25 years. Thank you for bringing us closer to everything, including us in all these things.

“For the rest of the world this was the old days of football, for us it was a family memory, and I don’t think any of us realized we were living in it, that we were in football history.

“And that lasts a long time until the final whistle.”