‘Focus on football’: Guardiola criticised by Manchester Jewish group over Palestine comments

The Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, has been urged to be “more careful with his future language” by representatives of the city’s Jewish community after he spoke out about Israel’s attacks on Gaza. Guardiola gave a speech in support of Palestinian children at a charity event in his home city of Barcelona last week, and on Tuesday he told journalists at a press conference how the suffering of innocent people caught up in conflict, including the one in the Middle East, “hurts” him, and leaves him feeling compelled to speak out.

However, he has been advised to “focus on football” by the Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester & Region, who fear such comments fuel antisemitic acts. The group also accused him of a “total failure” to display solidarity with Manchester’s Jewish community in the wake of last October’s attack on the Heaton Park Synagogue, in which two people were killed.

“We have repeatedly asked for prominent individuals to be mindful about the words they use given how Jewish people have had to endure attacks across the globe,” a statement posted on X read. “Pep Guardiola is a football manager. While his humanitarian reflections may be well intentioned, he should focus on football.

“Manchester City is being let down by him repeatedly straying into commentary on international affairs. This is the second time in a week he has decided to offer his controversial views on the Middle East conflict. It’s especially galling given his total failure to use his significant platform to display any solidarity with the Jewish community subjected to a terrorist attack a few miles from the Etihad Stadium or the Barcelona community reeling from antisemitic violence close to where he once engaged in remarks we believe to be provocative. We implore Mr Guardiola to be more careful in his future language given the significant risk faced by our community.”

City have been contacted for comment regarding the JRC statement.

Guardiola said on Tuesday: “Never, ever in the history of humanity have we had the info in front of our eyes, watching more clearly than now – genocide in Palestine, what happened in Ukraine, what happened in Russia, what happened all around the world, in Sudan, everywhere. What happened in front of us? Do you want to see it? It’s our problems as human beings.

“There is somebody who sees the images from all around the world who is not affected? Today we can see it. Before we could not see it. Today we see. It hurts me.

“If it was the opposite side, it would hurt me. Wanting harm for another country? It hurts me. [To] completely kill thousands of innocent people, it hurts me. It’s no more complicated than that. No more. When you have an idea and you need to defend [it] and you have to kill thousands, thousands of people – I’m sorry, I will stand up. Always I will be there, always.”