An inconsolable Pep Guardiola lamented the fact he won’t be able to shake the hand of his dearest friend Jose Mourinho when his Tottenham side take on Manchester City this evening.
The pair have forged an infrangible friendship over the years whilst competing for European football’s most prestigious prizes.
Tonight, Mourinho and Guardiola will be going to head-to-head for only the second time since November 2018 and the latter is ‘devastated’ he can’t shake his pal’s hand because of restrictions imposed as a result of the ongoing global pandemic.
‘It breaks my heart because I won’t be able to throw my arms Jose and tell him how much I love him’, the 49-year-old ex-Barca boss revealed.
‘To know he is only a few feet away yet I won’t feel that sweet embrace is the bitterest of pills to swallow’.
The Spaniard revealed how his friendship with Mourinho blossomed while the pair were in charge of Spanish football’s fiercest rivals.
‘It was all banter’, grinned the former Camp Nou chief.
‘The insults, the histrionics on the touchline, the eye-gouging – it was all part of a running joke between us. Even when he ran through the sprinklers at Inter. we were just joking around.’
‘And after a feisty El Classico, the pair of us would hang out at each other’s villas and drink Sangrias by the pool’.
When asked if he’d any ideas on how to compensate for the lack of pre and post-match handshakes with his buddy, Pep said:
‘I’ll probably blow a few kisses at him or make little heart shapes with my fingers’.
Meanwhile, Spurs manager Jose Mourinho was equally as perplexed at the situation.
‘Even though I can’t hold Pep in my arms, he knows I’ll always hold him in my heart’, sobbed the 57-year-old former Chelsea gaffer.
In other Guardiola news, Lionel Messi has dropped the biggest hint yet that he wants a pay rise at Barca by issuing a 17th ‘come and get me plea’ to Manchester City.
Speaking exclusively to Paddy Power News, the diminutive Argentine said: ‘Hey, Cristiano flirts with United every year for more money, why can’t I?’.
READ MORE:
- Spurs v City Tips: Kane and Son to light up 43/1 Same Game Multi
- Revealed: The ‘anti-English’ video Stephen Kenny showed Ireland squad
- Guardiola commits to 2 more years of not winning the Champions League at City
- Betting on the Premier League this weekend? We got tips
THE PADDY POWER GUIDE TO RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING – EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW