Manchester City fans grew concerned after spotting scratches and cuts on Pep Guardiola’s head and nose following their 3-3 Champions League draw with Feyenoord last month. New information has since come to light about the cause of these unusual marks.
When questioned about the injuries shortly after the match, Guardiola initially explained, “With my finger, yeah, with my nail. I want to harm myself, yeah,” though he later retracted these remarks.
Spanish football analyst Guillem Balague has since shed light on the incident, attributing it to Guardiola’s nervous habits. In a social media Q&A, Balague noted: “You know he kind of scratches his head? It’s a gesture of nervousness. Usually, nothing happens, but that day, one of his nails was too sharp, and it caused a mark on his nose.”
Balague added that Guardiola’s nose injury occurred before the Feyenoord game and linked it to a tense disagreement with Kyle Walker over positional football during a pre-match discussion.
“If you recall, he started the game with a cover on his nose because, the day before, there had been a football-related argument with Kyle Walker about his positioning. This led to Guardiola getting nervous, scratching his nose again, and needing to cover the mark—it happened in his office.”
Balague further explained that while the noticeable scratch on Guardiola’s nose lingered, the red marks on his head disappeared soon after the match. He recounted:
“After the game, Pep was scratching his head—nervous and tense—and then went to the press conference. His assistant sent him a photo showing the marks on his head. But when Pep checked after the press conference, the scratches were gone. The marks were just a temporary consequence of walking into the dressing room. By then, they had faded.”
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