{"id":3179,"date":"2026-05-20T03:55:44","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T03:55:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/?p=3179"},"modified":"2026-05-20T03:55:44","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T03:55:44","slug":"pep-guardiola-message-to-arsenal-on-epl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/2026\/05\/20\/pep-guardiola-message-to-arsenal-on-epl\/","title":{"rendered":"Pep Guardiola\u00a0Message To Arsenal On EPL"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a display of sportsmanship amid disappointment, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has congratulated rivals Arsenal on clinching the 2025\/26 Premier League title following City\u2019s 1-1 draw against Bournemouth on Tuesday night. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The result at the Vitality Stadium mathematically confirmed Arsenal as champions for the first time in 22 years, ending their long wait since 2004 and snapping three consecutive runner-up finishes behind City. Arsenal lead the table with an unassailable points advantage, boasting the league\u2019s best goal difference and defensive record. <\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Speaking to Carrie Brown after the match, Guardiola offered gracious words on behalf of Manchester City: <\/span><\/span><\/span>\u201cOn behalf of Man City we congratulate Mikel [Arteta], the staff, players, fans and Arsenal for this Premier League. Next season we will be back.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Guardiola, who previously worked with Arteta as his assistant at Barcelona, acknowledged Arsenal\u2019s outstanding campaign. Reports from post-match interviews noted him praising the Gunners as \u201cphenomenal\u201d and fully deserving of the title.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Dramatic Night at Vitality Stadium<\/span><\/span><\/span>Bournemouth took a shock lead in the 39th minute through Junior Kroupi, with Erling Haaland equalizing for City deep in stoppage time. While the point secured European football for the Cherries for the first time in their history, it was not enough for City to keep the title race alive heading into the final matchday.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Arsenal fans erupted in celebrations outside the Emirates Stadium as news of the draw filtered through, with fireworks lighting up the night sky. Players like Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka are expected to join further festivities ahead of the club\u2019s final fixture against Crystal Palace.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The congratulations came alongside renewed speculation about Guardiola\u2019s tenure at the Etihad. With one year remaining on his contract, the Spaniard has faced questions about his plans amid City\u2019s off-field challenges, including ongoing scrutiny over alleged financial charges. In the interview, he signaled his intent to challenge for the title again next season but stopped short of confirming his long-term commitment.<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Social media reactions were mixed, with Arsenal supporters celebrating the moment while some City fans and neutrals debated whether this marks the end of an era for the City manager. <\/span><\/span><\/span>Arsenal\u2019s triumph under Arteta represents a significant milestone for the club and a tactical evolution that has seen them consistently challenge at the highest level.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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For Guardiola, a serial winner with multiple Premier League titles, the focus now shifts to regrouping and mounting what he promises will be a strong comeback. <\/span><\/span><\/span>As the Premier League season draws to a close, Arsenal\u2019s victory stands as a testament to persistence and excellence \u2014 duly recognized even by their fiercest competitor.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a display of sportsmanship amid disappointment, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has congratulated rivals Arsenal on clinching the 2025\/26 Premier League title following City\u2019s 1-1 draw against Bournemouth on Tuesday night. The result at the Vitality Stadium mathematically confirmed Arsenal as champions for the first time in 22 years, ending their long wait since […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3180,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[529],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"blocksy_meta":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/stateupdate.co.ke\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/An-image-of-Pep-Guardiola-and-Arsenal-players.webp?fit=1440%2C810&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc68Dd-Ph","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3179","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3179"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3179\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3182,"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3179\/revisions\/3182"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3180"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3179"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3179"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateupdate.co.ke\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3179"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}