Enzo Maresca has admitted he would describe Manchester City as “cheats” if he were a Manchester United or Arsenal fan. The City manager made the remark while arguing that the scandal surrounding the club has been harder on the supporters than it has been on him or his players.
“It probably has been more tough for our fans than for the players or for me as it’s more complicated,” Maresca said, “because if I am an Arsenal fan or a United fan and you are a City fan, I can tell you: ‘Hey, my friend, you cheat’ – or this kind of thing. But we were happy at the end of the game and inside the changing room. We were very happy celebrating the three points because we know how difficult it is at Anfield.”
His comments followed City’s 3-0 win at Liverpool on Sunday, their first match since the club were found guilty of more than 100 charges related to breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules. Maresca was asked whether the performance stemmed from the team being brought closer together by the guilty verdict. He insisted the result itself did not change his approach: “We won 0-3 at Anfield. Even if it was 0-1 it would be exactly the same. We are here today to win tomorrow’s game and we work every day to win games. It’s the only thing that we can think; we can be focused. The rest is just things from outside that we need to deal with but we were so happy inside the pitch and you cannot imagine inside the changing room.”
City have appealed against the independent commission’s ruling and continue to protest their innocence, and they have drawn criticism for the exuberant manner of Sunday’s celebrations. Maresca defended the revelry while stressing the need to turn attention to Wednesday’s Champions League meeting with Paris Saint-Germain at the Etihad, City’s second game of the campaign after a 2-0 victory at Porto. “I promise you that I stress a lot about the gameplan and how we can train every day but I don’t stress about things I don’t [control]. The message to the players will be the same. We know how serious the situation is but at the same time it’s not something that we can do [anything about],” he said.
Rúben Dias, the City captain, echoed his manager’s stance. “When you build yourself as a player, you build yourself against any noise,” the defender said. “Personally, and I feel like I speak for the whole group, we’re very calm. We trust the club, and we’re very focused on enjoying football. People don’t love us winning and we love to win.”
Pep Guardiola is expected to be at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday in a show of support for City’s owners, and Maresca welcomed the prospect of his predecessor’s presence. “In case he’s coming, it’s a nice feeling,” he said. “Especially for him, because this has been his house for 10 years. It’s exciting for everyone.”