{"id":276040,"date":"2026-02-01T22:57:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T22:57:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/276040\/"},"modified":"2026-02-01T22:57:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-01T22:57:09","slug":"man-city-boss-pep-guardiola-risks-punishment-with-sarcastic-var-comment-after-tottenham-goal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/276040\/","title":{"rendered":"Man City boss Pep Guardiola risks punishment with sarcastic VAR comment after Tottenham goal"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Pep Guardiola was furious after Dominic Solanke&#8217;s contentious first goal was allowed to stand as Manchester City were pegged back to draw 2-2 with Tottenham on Sunday<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Pep Guardiola speaks in a post-match interview\" loading=\"eager\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0_pep-varJPG.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Pep Guardiola was furious with the officials\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Pep Guardiola was furious with the officials(Image: Sky Sports)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Pep Guardiola renewed his war against VAR after Manchester City were on the receiving end of a contentious call <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/sport\/football\/match-reports\/tottenham-spurs-manchester-city-highlights-36652378\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\">in their costly 2-2 draw<\/a> with <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/tottenham-hotspur-fc\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Tottenham<\/a>. Dominic Solanke scored two second-half goals as Spurs roared back to secure a point and dent City&#8217;s Premier League title hopes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Goals from Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo had City cruising and 2-0 up at half-time with Spurs booed off by their own fans. But Tottenham were a completely different side after the break with Solanke netting twice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The first Spurs goal was controversial, with Solanke appearing to kick through Marc Guehi to score past Gianluigi Donnarumma. The goal was given on-field by referee Robert Jones and allowed to stand by VAR Jarred Gillett, despite City&#8217;s protestations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Solanke then scored a stunning scorpion kick to level things up and leave City six points behind <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/arsenal-fc\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Arsenal<\/a> at the top of the Premier League table. <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/pep-guardiola\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\">Guardiola<\/a> has <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/sport\/football\/news\/pep-guardiola-man-city-var-36609360\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\">made his feelings on VAR very clear recently<\/a> and was once again unable to hold his tongue post-match.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">FOLLOW OUR MAN CITY FB PAGE!<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MirrorFootballManCity\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> Follow our Manchester City Mirror Football Facebook page<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0_GettyImages-2259420567.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>OPINION<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/john_cross.png\" alt=\"Author avatar\"\/>John Cross<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Asked by <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/bbc\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">BBC<\/a> Radio 5 Live what he made of Spurs&#8217; first goal, he replied: &#8220;Well, if you do it to a striker it would be a penalty. I&#8217;m not a referee. Fascinating in the <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/premier-league\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Premier League<\/a>.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">He was more reserved when quizzed by <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/sky-sports\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Sky Sports<\/a>. &#8220;Once again,&#8221; he said vaguely when asked initially. Pressed by reporter Patrick Davison, Guardiola asked: &#8220;have you seen it?&#8221; When Davison said his opinion didn&#8217;t matter, Guardiola shrugged, said &#8220;OK, I understand&#8221; and tried to walk out of the interview.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Asked a third time for his opinion, Guardiola added simply: &#8220;No, nothing. Nothing, that&#8217;s all.&#8221; Asked if he didn&#8217;t want to get drawn into it, he said: &#8220;Of course not! Come on. It happened once again. What can I say? Marc has the ball and he&#8217;s been kicked from behind and it&#8217;s a goal, so what can I say? Nothing, one more.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Dominic Solanke of Tottenham Hotspur scores their 1st goal\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0_GettyImages-2258833564.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Dominic Solanke's goal was allowed to stand \" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Dominic Solanke&#8217;s goal was allowed to stand (Image: Charlotte Wilson\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">On co-commentary duties for Sky Sports, <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/all-about\/gary-neville\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Gary Neville<\/a> felt the officials were right to allow the goal to stand. But former striker Clinton Morrison had a different take on BBC Radio 5 Live. \u201cHe kicks through Guehi,&#8221; he said. \u201cThat should be a foul. I don&#8217;t know what VAR are doing. VAR should have got involved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Tottenham manager Thomas Frank was delighted by Solanke&#8217;s impact, but did concede the first goal was a close decision. &#8220;I think Dom [Solanke] got a clear touch on it, but I can see it is a 50-50 situation,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I think it is one of those which is borderline, but I think it can be a goal.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Asked about the first goal by Sky Sports, Solanke smiled and said: &#8220;We know they have a high line and we wanted to exploit that at times, so I played on the last defender.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;It was a lovely ball from Xavi [Simons] and I took a touch inside and it&#8217;s definitely my goal, I don&#8217;t know why they&#8217;re saying that (it was a Guehi own goal). Obviously, I think Marc was coming in for a last-ditch tackle but it was nice finish.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\"><a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/chat.whatsapp.com\/Feq1SEG6mXDIZGTTnek7oz\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Join our new WhatsApp community<\/a> and receive your daily dose of <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Mirror<\/a> <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/sport\/football\/\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Football<\/a> content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don&#8217;t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you&#8217;re curious, you can read our <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reachplc.com\/site-services\/privacy-policy\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Privacy Notice.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package<\/p>\n<p>This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/affiliates\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Learn more<\/a><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Content Image\" fetchpriority=\"auto\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1769986629_988_0_Sky-Factbox.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u00a349<\/p>\n<p>\u00a335<\/p>\n<p>Sky<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"AffiliateContent_content-buy-btn__xWiVO buy-btn\" aria-label=\"Buy button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.awin1.com\/cread.php?awinmid=11005&amp;awinaffid=213635&amp;campaign=&amp;clickref=Regionals-FootballLondon&amp;ued=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sky.com%2Fdeals&amp;platform=pl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\">Get the deal here<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Sky has slashed the price of its <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.awin1.com\/cread.php?awinmid=11005&amp;awinaffid=213635&amp;platform=dl&amp;ued=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sky.com%2Fdeals\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\">Essential TV and Sky Sports<\/a> bundle ahead of the 2025\/26 season, saving members \u00a3336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pep Guardiola was furious after Dominic Solanke&#8217;s contentious first goal was allowed to stand as Manchester City were&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":276041,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[134316,42,18869,43,16909,1102,40,38,41,39,15010],"class_list":{"0":"post-276040","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-clinton-morrison","9":"tag-headlines","10":"tag-manchester-city-fc","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-pep-guardiola","13":"tag-premier-league","14":"tag-top-news","15":"tag-top-stories","16":"tag-topnews","17":"tag-topstories","18":"tag-tottenham-hotspur-fc"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=276040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276040\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/276041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=276040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=276040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=276040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}