Manchester City were on the receiving end of a 1-0 defeat against Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final on May 17 at Wembley Stadium.
Despite having multiple chances on the pitch, Man City ended up losing their only chance at silverware this season, leaving Pep Guardiola & Co. frustrated and disappointed.
While Eberechi Eze netted the winning goal for Crystal Palace, goalkeeper Dean Henderson emerged as a prominent name in the match, making six saves, including a penalty.
However, it seems that Guardiola did not appreciate Henderson's actions on the pitch and deemed them incorrect. A spat between the two was seen after the final whistle went off.
Henderson seemingly handled the ball outside the penalty area in the 26th minute while trying to intercept a pass intended for Erling Haaland, denying City a goal-scoring chance. While many believed that he should have received a booking or been sent off, VAR's decision was in the favor of the English goalkeeper.
Henderson was shown a yellow card in 90+1 minutes for wasting time on the pitch. Speaking after the match, the 28-year-old shot-stopper revealed (comments via India Today) what he told Guardiola, mentioning that he thinks the Catalan manager 'was disappointed with the time wasting.'
"I just went to shake his hand but obviously I think he was disappointed with the time wasting. I said, ‘You got the 10 minutes [of added time] that you wanted.’ No hard feelings," he said.
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Guardiola, meanwhile, remained tight-lipped when asked about the controversial VAR call on Henderson, following the end of the match.
What did Pep Guardiola say?
Guardiola was asked by reporters to share his thoughts on Henderson avoiding a caution in the first half. The 54-year-old manager refused to answer and redirected the question to the referees.
“Don’t ask me, ask the VAR and the referee."
When asked to share his take on Henderson wasting time on the pitch, Guardiola responded that 'everyone can do whatever they want'
"Listen, he defended his position, we defended our position. I understand in the last minutes, but since the first or second minutes? He’s British, you know, in the English football, you have to play," he said.
"I’m sorry, everyone can do whatever they want. We have to score goals. We didn’t lose because Henderson was time-wasting. But it’s a question of rhythm for the players," Guardiola added.
While the current season will not go down as one of the good ones in Guardiola's books, Man City will be fighting for a top-five finish in the Premier League to seal a Champions League spot for the next campaign.
Guardiola's squad are set to face Bournemouth next in the Premier League on May 20, at Etihad Stadium.
Man City news and related links
- Kevin De Bruyne makes thoughts clear on Man City Club World Cup decision
- Pep Guardiola trophies won as manager: List of titles with Manchester City, Barcelona and Bayern Munich
- Crystal Palace vs. Man City final score: Eagles stun Guardiola to lift FA Cup after Eze, Henderson heroics