Saturday Afternoon’s Alright for Fighting! Pep Guardiola takes a break from his FA Cup final preparations to go to an Elton John concert in Manchester… after revealing five years ago he was desperate to watch the pop legend perform live
Pep Guardiola took a break from his FA Cup final preparations with Manchester City to take in an Elton John concert on Wednesday night.
The storied manager is in the midst of a landmark treble charge with the sky blue side of the city after winning the Premier League three games before the end of the season.
City will face their crosstown rivals Manchester United on Saturday at Wembley, meeting at the iconic ground for the first time since their semi-final in the same competition over a decade ago.
Should they beat Erik ten Hag’s side in the capital, City will complete their third challenge in Istanbul when they face Inter Milan in the Champions League final.
But writing his team into the history books was the furthest thing on his mind when the former Barcelona manager joined the crowds at the AO Arena for the first night of the ‘Crocodile Rock’ hitmaker’s Manchester tour dates.
Pep Guardiola looked delighted to fulfil his long-held dream of attending an Elton John concert
The pop star is currently performing his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour around Europe
Guardiola attended the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour with his eldest daughter Maria, who shared videos of the artist performing hits such as ‘Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word’ and ‘Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting’.
The league-topping head coach was seen filming the performances, a beaming smile painted on his face.
The manager had previously handed his players two days off after the end of their league campaign, citing the importance of recovery during such an intense period.
‘Go with your families, if the sun is shining, play golf, do whatever you want and go to the quality to prepare for the finals,’ Guardiola advised. ‘You have to train a little but exactly what we need to arrive in the best conditions for the final, they know.
Guardiola is a longstanding fan of Watford’s honorary life president, referencing the pop star in 2018 during an interview with BBC Sounds about his six favourite songs.
His favourite from the artist’s repetoire is ‘Your Song’, and the manager said that hearing it live was a long-held fantasy.
‘One of my dreams is to have a concert from Elton John, especially this song. I first heard it was when I was 18 or 19 and started to play in Barcelona, I remember a lot of songs from that period in my life.
Sir Elton is honorary life president of Watford, after previously serving as the club’s chairman
The Catalan manager has an unbeaten record against the Hornets, winning all 11 of their ties
‘I met him (Elton John) when we played Watford last season, the last game, and it was a huge pleasure,’ Guardiola added.
‘Hopefully he can organise a concert please. I will be there.’
From a footballing perspective, Sir Elton may not be the biggest fan of Guardiola’s in return.
The Catalan manager’s City side have a ferocious record against the Hertfordshire club, winning all 11 of their meetings.
