Pep Guardiola has insisted Manchester City’s players and coaches support club bosses “100 per cent” in their denial of breaking Financial Fair Play regulations.
City were on Friday hit with a two-season European football ban and fined 30million euros (24.9million) for breaching financial rules, but have vowed to fight UEFA’s ruling.
Chief executive Ferran Soriano denied that City had been guilty of any wrongdoing on Wednesday, before manager Guardiola also backed the club’s hierarchy.
Guardiola spoke to Sky Sports before kick-off in the Premier League match at home to West Ham, saying: “We cannot control; we support the club 100 per cent, and what you have to do is play our games.
“(The players) are exceptional professionals. Hopefully (the fans) can help us here until the end of the season.
“It’s happened in the last seasons all the time, so we’ll just play our game.
“I know it’s not the perfect day to come, it’s a Champions League (night), and it’s raining, but we have to play for the people who are here.”
Earlier on Wednesday City released a video where Soriano refuted UEFA’s findings.
“These allegations are simply not true,” Sorriano said in a video interview on the club’s website.
He added that it was not an issue for manager Pep Guardiola or the players to comment on.
“Obviously, he (Guardiola) has been kept informed about this process but this is not something for him to respond to,” Soriano said.
“He is focused on the football, he is focusing on the game, the game at hand, the game today (against West Ham), tomorrow and the next weeks.
“As well as the players… They are calm, they are focused and this matter is more a business matter, a legal matter than a football matter.”
