Pep Guardiola Comments on 'Unacceptable' Treatment of Arsenal Boss Arsene Wenger

Pep Guardiola has come out in defence of under-fire Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, branding the recent treatment of the Frenchman as "unacceptable."

Wenger saw his side outclassed by Bayern Munich in a 5-1 Champions League last-16 drubbing on Feb. 15, leading to calls for him to end his 20-year reign at the club.

But after watching his Manchester City team held to a goalless draw by Huddersfield Town in the FA Cup fifth round, Guardiola hit out at criticism of Wenger, per Mark Crellin of Sky Sports.

"What I hear in the last 10 days, about how people, ex-players, journalists, treat Arsene Wenger is unacceptable," he said.

"Our job, in that moment, doesn't have any respect for any position, so it is not respectable what happened."

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Despite regularly guiding the Gunners to Champions League football, Wenger has been criticised for failing to take the next step and really go toe-to-toe with Europe's big clubs.

Indeed, it is not the first time Guardiola has offered support to Wenger. In December 2016, the former Barcelona coach anointed his rival "commander-in-chief."

Per Jamie Jackson of the Guardian, he said:

"

He's the boss, no? The commander-in-chief, the chief for Arsenal. I’m the commander-in-chief for Manchester City. I saw many Netflix series and that’s why [I say this]. Commander-in-chief and colonel, I use a lot. I like his way of football.

He has been there a long time. What happens at a club such as Arsenal, it’s because a person is doing a good job. I understand it’s not easy to win the Premier League but I have a lot of respect about his career. I’ve said many times I admire the way he tries to play and especially the quality of the players they like and they buy.

"

The pair have similar philosophies when it comes to setting up a team and the style in which they want their players to entertain supporters—with quality approach play and passing out from the back.

The Bayern hammering was a new low for Wenger, noted by John Cross of the Mirror on Twitter:

Guardiola himself has suffered during his debut season in England as results haven't always gone his way at City, and he can clearly sympathise with his Arsenal counterpart.

Matters could conceivably get worse for Wenger, particularly with an FA Cup fifth-round clash away to Sutton United on their artificial pitch on Monday.

If the Gunners were to fall to a shock defeat at Gander Green Lane, it is questionable whether the experienced Frenchman would wish to continue as the club's manager, despite his previous successes.

Arguably Wenger's days at Arsenal look numbered, and it appears to be a straightforward question of whether he truly believes he can make Arsenal a major force on the European stage. He may also be unwilling to take any more batterings from the fans and media.