#Letakan iklan disini
Football Jun 12, 2026

Man City 1-2 Aston Villa: Pep Guardiola, Bernardo Silva and John Stones bid farewell during final-day defeat to Villa

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
Man City 1-2 Aston Villa: Pep Guardiola, Bernardo Silva and John Stones bid farewell during final-day defeat to Villa

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.

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.

Pep's parade might have been muted, with the 'oles' coming from the away end rather than the record-breaking home crowd, but the locals got what they came for, 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 press home their advantage.

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 Premier League game across an entire decade. A quite astonishing record for a truly remarkable manager.

He will be missed as much by Mancunians as he will by English football for his incredible impact.

Pep Guardiola addressed the Etihad crowd for the final time after game, tears in his eyes, his T-shirt stained with emotion from earlier.

He was interrupted several times with a chorus of '10 more years Guardiola'. Flares and fireworks followed, before a lap of honour that 60,000 fans stayed to witness in person.

"I'm so nervous and terrified right now," he said.

"Why do you love me so much?

"I never could imagine the amount of love. It has been an incredible, tremendous honour to be your manager and to be here during these 10 years.

"Hopefully, through these unbelievable players, we provided emotions that made people come here and feel maybe we are going to have fun. That is the reason why we are here.

"Every decision I took, even with all the mistakes, I always thought about what was best for this club.

"I love you so much.

"And let me finish with what I wanted to say a few days ago, that they didn't allow me to say…

"It has been f******* fun."

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery:

"Outstanding, outstanding how we finished the season.

"Beating Liverpool at home last week and today against Manchester City away is really fantastic.

"The Europa League is a trophy after a long time and something that makes us so proud.

"In the first half we were resilient. In the second half we were dominating, scoring goals, having chances and we came back."

On Ollie Watkins' World Cup selection: "Fantastic because he's a fighter. Even when he was not performing like he wanted, he was always doing his task. I always told him: calm, keep going, the goals are coming.

"At the end he achieved it."

Already thinking about the 2026/27 Premier League season?

There's a to fit in first - follow live blogs of every game on the - but the for next term, when Your Site will once again show .

Here's your summer diary:

June 11: World Cup starts -
June 14:
June 15: Summer transfer window opens
June 17:
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

Tags:

football report

Share this article

Related Posts

Kenny Jackett: Former Wolves, Millwall, Portsmouth and Swansea manager dies aged 64

Kenny Jackett: Former Wolves, Millwall, Portsmouth and Swansea manager dies aged 64

Former Wolves, Millwall and Portsmouth boss Kenny Jackett has died aged 64.The ex-Wales international - who earned 31 caps - passed away on June 11. H...

How the USA fell in love with football: World Cup 1994, the Premier League and the outspoken vision of Alan Rothenberg

How the USA fell in love with football: World Cup 1994, the Premier League and the outspoken vision of Alan Rothenberg

Alan Rothenberg had a vision: A World Cup so enticing it could convince the USA - and the world - that the country could fall in love with football.A...

World Cup 2026 fixture schedule and UK kick-off times: Day-by-day breakdown of all 104 matches including England, Scotland

World Cup 2026 fixture schedule and UK kick-off times: Day-by-day breakdown of all 104 matches including England, Scotland

Here's your day-by-day breakdown of the 48-team, 37-day World Cup which features 103 matches leading up to the final on July 19.All the kick-offs for...

World Cup 2026 news and live updates - USA, Canada and Mexico build-up plus latest on Trump, tickets and fans

World Cup 2026 news and live updates - USA, Canada and Mexico build-up plus latest on Trump, tickets and fans

Southampton confirm retained listSouthampton have confirmed eight players will leave the club when their contracts expire at the end of JuneOriol Rome...

World Cup 2026: England team is built around Harry Kane - he's the only genuine world-class player in squad, says Gary Neville

World Cup 2026: England team is built around Harry Kane - he's the only genuine world-class player in squad, says Gary Neville

Gary Neville believes the England team has been built around Harry Kane, who he considers the only genuine world-class player in the squad.Kane has en...

Edin Dzeko interview: Bosnia striker on playing at the World Cup aged 40 after helping Schalke back to the Bundesliga

Edin Dzeko interview: Bosnia striker on playing at the World Cup aged 40 after helping Schalke back to the Bundesliga

“I did not think I would be playing at 40,” admits Edin Dzeko. But here he is. Not just playing but getting ready to captain Bosnia and Herzegovina at...