Manchester City’s dramatic triumph at Leeds United was marred by ugly scenes during and after the game as players clashed, Leeds boss Daniel Farke was shown a red card and Pep Guardiola called for ‘respect’ on a night home fans jeered as players observed Ramadan.
Antoine Semenyo’s 45th-minute strike secured three points but only after City had to dig in to preserve a clean sheet amid a late Leeds onslaught.
Leeds supporters booed en masse as three City players broke their fast for Ramadan, while Guardiola was involved in a stand-off with home fans in the Elland Road main stand during the second half.
One man in the home end appeared to head towards City’s dugout to confront Guardiola while the game was ongoing.
‘They said something to me,’ Guardiola said. ‘W*****, w*****. But anyway, it is what it is.’
Guardiola blew kisses and waved to that area of the stadium once the match finished, sarcastically claiming that his family were sat in that enclosure.
Daniel Farke then saw red for confronting referee Peter Bankes after full time, while City skipper Bernardo Silva had to be led away after appearing to goad Leeds fans behind one goal.
Guardiola called for ‘respect’ after the scenes in the 12th minute when Rayan Cherki, Rayan Ait-Nouri and Omar Marmoush were afforded time to take on vitamins and water after fasting.
Both teams headed over to their respective benches for around a minute. That was met by a chorus of persistent boos and offensive chanting from home fans until the match restarted.
A message relaying that players were breaking fast was beamed onto Elland Road’s screens at the same time as the dissent.
‘It is a modern world, right?’ Guardiola said. ‘[You see] what is happening in the world today. Respect religion, diversity, that is the point. The Premier League says you can have one or two minutes, you can have for the [fasting] players to do it [break their fast]. It is what it is, unfortunately.
‘Of course they [the players] know it. We took on a little bit of vitamins because they did not eat today. No more than that. The question is, can they do it or not? What is the problem?’
City requested the introduction of a break on Friday, which Leeds accommodated and confirmed 24 hours ahead of the meeting.
Farke’s starting XI did not include any Muslim players. Ramadan will end next month, with a break in fasting expected during the FA Cup clash between Wrexham and Chelsea in next week’s 5:45pm kick off.
Farke remonstrated with Bankes at full time for not elongating stoppage time and his sending off meant the German could not conduct post-match interviews.
Leeds assistant manager Edmund Riemer said: ‘We had six minutes added time. If you’re chasing the game and see the opposition doing what all teams do and waste time – they got booked for wasting time – then you can add a few seconds more.
‘You’re emotional. The explanation is going to be that he is overly emotional. We’d wish for a more sensible reaction from the referee, to give a yellow card.’
Riemer added that the backroom staff was ‘disappointed’ at the booing of the Ramadan break, while Guardiola praised his side’s fortitude in keeping Leeds out as they hunted a late equaliser.
‘Leeds is so intense,’ the City boss added. ‘After that we did what we are good at, a thousand million passes, [making] the vibe of the crowd a little bit more calm.
‘We missed a little bit of intention up front with the movements but when they got fatigued we had more intention. We normally drop in the second half but that didn’t happen today: we didn’t concede anything.
‘It was long balls where we struggled. It was more uncomfortable but we defended really well. We played a complete game, in a tough, tough place and with 10 games left in the Premier League it is time to be decisive.’
Meanwhile, a Kick It Out statement read: ‘It’s massively disappointing that some Leeds United fans jeered when Manchester City’s players broke their fast during the first half of the match at Elland Road this evening. This was compounded by the fact that an explanation was displayed on a big screen inside the stadium.
‘Pausing the game to allow Muslim players to break their fast during Ramadan has been an agreed protocol for several years now. It’s an important and visible part of making the game welcoming for Muslim players and communities.
‘But as tonight’s reaction shows, football still has a long way to go in terms of education and acceptance.’
