Pundit Steve Nicol has slammed Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola after Gabriel Jesus’ recent comments about the Spaniard.
Earlier this week, Jesus revealed that he made the decision to leave City last summer after Guardiola decided to play Oleksandr Zinchenko in an attacking role ahead of him for a Champions League game against Paris Saint-Germain.
After this team new came out, the Brazilian said went off crying and called him Mum saying he wanted to leave the Manchester club.
This has since led to one pundit sharing his thoughts on the matter, sharing more sympathy for Jesus than his former manager.
Nicol slams Guardiola after Jesus comments
Speaking in a recent video on the ESPN FC YouTube channel, Nicol had this to say about Jesus’ recent revelation.
He said: “I mean, talk about a slap in the face, I’m not surprised the kid was crying.
“He’d be crying because he felt bad for himself, he’d be crying with anger, he’d be crying because he just couldn’t believe it. Could you imagine what was going through his head?
“No question, Pep, trying to be far too clever, but I tell you what, from a professional point of view, I don’t know anybody who would have accepted that, I mean that’s just a complete and utter, as I said, a slap across the face.”
The Spaniard has been known to experiment when it comes to putting players in different positions than they’re used to, with a recent example being with John Stones, who spent the final leg of last season playing in a defensive-midfield role.
However, to put Zinchenko ahead of him in an attacking role, it’s understandable why Jesus may not have been happy at that moment.
Since joining Arsenal last summer, the 26-year-old scored 11 goals and delivered seven assists in 26 Premier League appearances but ultimately ended the campaign with no silverware.
With Guardiola’s side winning the treble last time out, it’d be interesting if the former City star had any regrets about leaving the Manchester club given how he’d currently be a European champion had he stayed.
