Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola has demanded a chance to allow more fans into the stadium. This was made known by the Manchester City supporters group. They said the manager has called for more fans to attend their Premier League game with Southampton.
This was done after Wednesday’s Champions League win over RB Leipzig. Guardiola said he “would like more people” on Saturday. Kevin Parker, general secretary of Manchester City’s official supporters’ club, said the comments were “frustrating”. “It’s not factual. Our attendances are generally excellent,” he added.
Kevin Parker said: “He [Pep Guardiola] doesn’t understand the difficulties that some people might have getting to a game on a Wednesday at 8 pm.” Attendances for City’s Champions League games at home have tended to be lower than those for Premier League games.
The Etihad Stadium capacity is about 55,000, and there was a crowd of 38,062 against RB Leipzig, with the away section virtually empty. Man City averaged 54,219 during the 2019-20 Premier League season, and more than 51,000 attended their first two league games at home this term.
The secretary said their victory is not in the hands of the fans or supporters from other teams who want to take every opportunity to go at City for what they think are the poor attendances. He maintained that the Etihad was the ‘Emptyhad’. It’s a little bit of fun by the opposition supporters, but there’s no justification for it.