Real Madrid fans were left fuming as a photo, swiftly deleted by Pep Guardiola, surfaced showing the Manchester City boss and his staff celebrating their 4-0 victory over Los Blancos on Wednesday.
City humiliated Carlo Ancelotti’s side to reach the Champions League final in style at the Etihad – courtesy of two goals from Bernardo Silva, one from Manuel Akanji, before Julian Alvarez added the gloss on the victory by netting in injury time.
Guardiola’s men will head to the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul on June 10 to face Inter Milan after the 5-1 aggregate win that lays down a huge marker against the 14-time winners of the competition.
And following the win, a photo was posted on Instagram by Manuel Estiarte – who is a close friend of Guardiola and part of City’s technical staff – that showed the City boss along with friends and his colleagues holding four fingers up in reference to their 4-0 win, with the caption ‘Four?’.
Among those joining Guardiola in the photo were his brother, Pere, City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak and former Argentina president Mauricio Macri as they celebrated in a private room at the Etihad.
Pep Guardiola has infuriated Real Madrid fans after a quickly-deleted photo showed the Man City boss and his colleagues celebrating their 4-0 win over Real Madrid on Wednesday. L-R: Pere Guardiola (top), Martin Edelman (bottom), Abdulla Khouri, Mauricio Macri, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Alberto Galassi, Pep Guardiola, Joan Patsy (bottom) and Manuel Estiarte
Carlo Ancelotti’s side were humiliated by City, as the reigning champions lost 5-1 on aggregate
The four-finger celebration had a reference to former Barcelona player Gerard Pique who become iconic for holding up five fingers when they beat Real Madrid 5-0 back in 2010
Also in the picture were directors Martin Edelman, Abdulla Khouri, Alberto Galassi – and City Football Group board member Joan Patsy.
The celebration had significance for Guardiola given one of his former players at Barcelona, Gerard Pique did something similar during his career.
In November 2010, the Catalan giants defeated their bitter rivals Real Madrid 5-0 in El Classico and in what has become iconic in Spanish football, the former defender held up five fingers in reference to all their goals – a celebration he went onto repeat at similar moments during his career.
And Real fans were not happy with their former nemesis and his celebrations, with the photo hastily-deleted by Estiarte.
One said: ‘I hope they lose the final so they keep those four fingers where they can best.’
Another added: ‘Vamos Inter,’ in reference to City’s opponents in next month’s showdown in Istanbul.
A further angry supporter slammed Guardiola and City and insisted they still had a long way to go to match Real’s record 14 Champions League titles.
Pep’s celebrations with his City colleagues and friends infuriated several Real supporters
They said: ‘If they put a one before (the four), they will be able to understand the greatness of Madrid, 14 Champions League… they hangover of the 4-0 win passes tomorrow but achieving 14 Champions Leagues will not be seen by your eyes.’
Another quipped: ‘Great game, but behind that, (they are) leaving a lot to be desired as always. Pep’s style is like that.’
Meanwhile, one Madrid fan added: ‘This is the greatness of this team. We have beaten Jose (Pep Guardiola) on a few occasions, last year we showed him who was in charge in Europe and not a single gesture from the club. This is the difference.’
A final infuriated supporter claimed the celebration was unsurprising as they said: ‘What did you expect? It is one more cule (Barcelona fan). That’s how bastid and mediocre they are. We beat Barca 4-0 (eliminating them from the cup) at home and RM did nothing. That’s the difference between a serious and good club, them.’
Speaking after the win, Guardiola could barely hide his delight at avenging last year’s heartbreaking semi-final defeat in the same competition after extra time.
He said: ‘This is the best, playing a great game against Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals.
‘I wanted this draw, because last year was so hard that we had all the energy there. Because it was said that these players were worthless , who had no character.
‘I have the feeling that we have played with pain in our stomachs because of what happened to us.’
