NEWCASTLE, England — Pep Guardiola anticipates a two-game touchline ban following his explosive reaction to the officials during Manchester City’s 3-1 victory against Newcastle United on Saturday.
With this impressive win at St James’ Park, City secured their spot in the quarterfinals.
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Guardiola received a booking during the match after protesting referee Sam Barrott’s decision not to award a free kick following a confrontation between Jérémy Doku and Kieran Trippier.
This marked Guardiola’s sixth yellow card of the season, and after already serving a touchline ban for the FA Cup third-round tie against Exeter City, he is facing another extended suspension.
“When Jeremy Doku beats Trippier and heads towards the box, only to be pulled back from behind, I’m not asking for a yellow card, but it is a foul,” Guardiola stated.
“I will defend my team. Let me tell you, we hold all the records in this country, all of them, regardless of everything else.
“We are now the team with the most yellow cards for a manager.
“I want all the records, and now I have it. Looks like I’ll be enjoying a holiday for the next two games.
“Oh my goodness. There are things I still cannot comprehend after 10 years. Review the play.
“Of course, I’m going to stand up for Doku and for all my players. They keep doing their job.”
If his two-game suspension is confirmed, Guardiola would miss the upcoming Premier League match against West Ham and the FA Cup quarterfinal.
Barrott was also the referee for City’s 2-1 league loss to Newcastle in November, where Guardiola expressed outrage over a penalty that wasn’t awarded after Fabian Schär fouled Phil Foden.
“In the previous match in November, we couldn’t win due to Newcastle’s quality and for reasons that are better left unsaid; today was a similar situation,” Guardiola remarked, seemingly alluding to the officiating.