Pep Guardiola issues fresh sly dig at referees during Antoine Semenyo review

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has opted to personally count Antoine Semenyo’s disallowed goal against Newcastle in a fresh dig towards officials.

The latest comments comes after a period of increased frustration from the Catalan regarding officiating standards following the recent victory at St James’ Park. Both Guardiola and players have publicly questioned decisions in games against Newcastle, with Bernardo Silva and the City boss himself voicing concerns about consistency and VAR intervention.

Semenyo’s performance in the Carabao Cup semi-final first-leg only added further fuel to the debate, after the forward opened the scoring with a composed finish before later seeing another effort ruled out – denying him what would have been a deserved brace. Instead, it was Rayan Cherki who added the second goal late on to put City in a commanding position ahead of the return leg at the Etihad Stadium.

The 0-2 victory continued the Ghanaian’s remarkable start to life in Manchester, after scoring and assisting on his debut in the 10-1 FA Cup demolition of Exeter. And across just two appearances so far, Semenyo has already become a focal point of Guardiola’s attack.

That strong form now carries added significance as Manchester City prepare for a crucial Premier League trip to Old Trafford with momentum behind them, but also with ongoing concerns about officiating standards.

Speaking ahead of City’s Premier League clash away at Manchester United on Saturday lunchtime, Guardiola has been quizzed on whether January can be deemed as an ‘exceptional’ transfer window in the event of a further recruit.

And when it was pointed out to the Catalan boss that Antoine Semenyo had already scored twice in his first two Manchester City appearances, Guardiola quickly corrected one reporter, “He’s scored three goals.”

Guardiola went on to explain, “Imagine if you played two games here, don’t score two goals, play bad – it would be a ‘disaster’ transfer window. That would be the analysis.

“Of course, I want to score as much goals as possible and play good, but he’s come for four, five, six, years, and I will be the judge after these four, five, six years. Not from these two games.

“And I have a lot of experience in that; when I arrive as a player and didn’t play good in the beginning, it’s not good. That’s why it’s be patient.”

Pep Guardiola’s insistence on counting the disallowed goal was widely interpreted as another subtle reminder of his dissatisfaction with recent refereeing calls, while also underlining how highly he already rates Antoine Semenyo’s contribution.

Looking ahead, Semenyo now has the chance to further enhance his growing reputation on one of the biggest stages in English football at Old Trafford, and a strong performance against United would only strengthen Guardiola’s view that City have secured a long-term asset.