Pep Guardiola in heated exchange with Brighton star as Man City boss reveals what he told defender
Pep Guardiola failed to hide his anger with Brighton defender Jan Paul van Hecke following Manchester City’s 2-1 defeat at the Amex Stadium.
The Citizens went 1-0 up on the south coast courtesy of Erling Haaland’s record-breaking goal which brought up his 75th top-flight strike.
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Guardiola and Van Hecke were involved in a heated exchange after Brighton beat CityCredit: GettyBut the Seagulls fought back to claim all three points thanks to late goals from Joao Pedro and Matt O’Riley.
The defeat means that City have now lost four consecutive competitive matches for the first time since August 2006.
While it is the first time in Guardiola’s 17-year managerial career that he has lost as many matches on the bounce.
And following the full-time whistle, he let his frustrations out on Van Hecke, with cameras spotting the heated exchange.
READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWSGuardiola took exception to the Dutchman hauling down Haaland in injury time after he fell to the ground having shielded the ball for goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen to claim.
It led to Haaland being booked over his animated reaction towards the 24-year-old.
Guardiola was then spotted approaching Van Hecke on the pitch after the match, where he whispered something in his ear.
The duo then continued their apparent argument, with Guardiola getting right in the player’s face.
They ended their conversation by shaking hands, with Guardiola later revealing what he had told Van Hecke.
Commenting on the incident, the Spaniard said: “He was strong with Erling [Haaland].
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Guardiola refused to let Van Hecke go as he whispered in his earCredit: Getty
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The Spaniard took exception to Van Hecke dragging Haaland down in the boxCredit: AFP”I said, ‘When Erling then stands up to you, stay on your feet, don’t go to the grass’.
“But he played a really good game.”
When discussing City’s worrying form, the ex-Barcelona boss remarked: “Two in the Premier League.
“You have to count the victories and defeats, and we will win a lot. If you have to count how many victories in a row, we are far away from that position.
âItâs not nice to lose two in a row. The performance in certain moments is good, but not in all the minutes we need.
“We have to change to win again. Weâre not far away â second going into the international break.â
