Tag Archives: Khaldoon Al Mubarak

Pep Guardiola Extends MCFC Contract to 2027

I’ve just received this press release from Manchester City…


Manchester City is delighted to announce that manager Pep Guardiola has signed a two-year contract extension. The Catalan’s new deal will mean he will have spent more than a decade as City manager. Guardiola has won a remarkable 18 trophies during his tenure at the Club, including six
Premier League titles and one UEFA Champions League.


Last season, City became the first men’s team in the history of English football to win four top-flight titles in a row. The previous campaign saw Guardiola guide City to a historic Treble, winning the Premier League, UEFA Champions League and FA Cup.


Across all competitions, he has won 353 of the 490 matches he has overseen, giving him a win percentage of 72%. City have scored 1,200 goals during that period, at an average of 2.45 goals per game.


Club Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said: “Like every City fan, I am delighted that Pep’s journey with Manchester City will continue; allowing his dedication, passion and innovative thinking to continue to shape the landscape of the game.


“His hunger for improvement and success remains insatiable and the direct beneficiaries of that will continue to be our players and coaching staff, the culture of our Club, and the English game at large.


“This renewal will take Pep beyond a decade of coaching Manchester City and the opportunity to continue to re-write the managerial record books.”


Guardiola said: “Manchester City means so much to me. This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club. That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.


“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and of course the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.


“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much. Hopefully now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”

Manchester City’s Chairmen

Here’s a full list of Manchester City’s chairmen since the club’s earliest known game in 1880 through to today:

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Interview – History of Manchester Football

I was recently interviewed for the Christie Scanlon podcast and the video has now been posted. I talk about origins of both City and United, City’s badge consultation, chants and much more. It lasts about one hour and you can watch it on Christie’s channel here:

I enjoyed doing this and Christie’s a good interviewer and host. It looks like Christie’s used an automated captioning software that has made a few typos with names etc. – that’ll be because of my accent – but listen and watch. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.

Today’s the Day: Bell, Lee Summerbee Statue Unveiling

As well as tonight’s European game at the Etihad another major event is happening at the home of Manchester City. The statue celebrating the achievements of England internationals Colin Bell, Francis Lee and Mike Summerbee is being unveiled. I will be there and I know the statue recognises the achievements of all those involved in winning the major trophies of 1968 to 1970, including City’s first European trophy of course.

I’m sure it will be an excellent day. For those who want to know more on the statues, here’s something the club issues a few days ago on the sculptor:

This installation will be located on the west side of the perimeter and will be unveiled on Tuesday morning ahead of a UEFA Champions League meeting with RB Leipzig later that day, where fans will be invited to visit the permanent tribute to an extraordinary era in the Club’s history.

Speaking of his appointment to the project David Williams-Ellis said:

“It is a great honour to create a work of art for Manchester City Football Club celebrating the diverse, talented players, Bell, Lee and Summerbee.

“It’s been an extraordinary last two years, working on this project that celebrates these players from a great era in Manchester City’s football history.

“I hope that the work will give a sense of history and place to the legions of fans and visitors that come to the football ground from around the world and become an enduring part of Manchester’s cultural landscape.”

David Williams-Ellis – Artist Biography

David Williams-Ellis’ sculptures, worked in clay directly from life, are inspired by the romanticism of Rodin and Bourdelle and are noted for their sense of movement and vitality.

David was classically trained in Florence under drawing teacher, Nerina Simi. From there he went on to be an apprentice wood carver and then joined a community of marble carvers beneath the Carrara Mountains in Pietresanta.

David’s reputation was cemented after his time in Italy. Today, his work is in private and public collections across the globe and can be seen in flagship buildings including Scone Palace in Perthshire, Aberdeen’s Maritime Museum, the IFC Building in Shanghai and Oxford House, Swires, Hong Kong.

Amongst his most notable work includes the D-Day Memorial Sculpture, unveiled on 6th June 2019 above Gold Beach in Normandy to commemorate the 22443 service men and women who fell on D-Day and in the Normandy campaign under British command.

Here’s the D Day Memorial:

Bell, Lee Summerbee Statue Latest

Looking forward to Tuesday…

WORLD-RENOWNED SCULPTOR REVEALED AS ARTIST BEHIND PERMANENT TRIBUTE TO CITY’S LEGENDARY TRIUMVIRATE

  • Unveiling confirmed for Tuesday 28 November
  • World-renowned sculptor David Williams-Ellis chosen following exhaustive selection process overseen by Club Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak
  • Tribute will celebrate the legacy of Manchester City’s trophy-laden era of the late 1960s and early 1970s Manchester City Football Club is delighted to reveal that world-renowned sculptor David Williams-Ellis is the artist behind a permanent tribute to legendary triumvirate Colin Bell, Francis Lee and Mike Summerbee. A student of eminent octogenarian drawing teacher, Nerina Simi, Williams-Ellis sought out classical training in Florence where his signature style was first established. His sculptures, worked in clay, from life, are inspired by the romanticism of French sculptors Auguste Rodin and Antoine Bourdelle and are noted for their sense of movement and vitality. With exhibitions proudly displayed at Perthshire’s Scone Palace, Aberdeen’s Maritime Museum and the IFC Building in Shanghai, Williams-Ellis is perhaps most famously known for his commission of the Normandy Memorial Trust’s D-Day Sculpture. That monument was unveiled by French President Emmanuel Macron and then-British Prime Minister Theresa May in 2019. Designed and created at his Oxfordshire home studio, Williams-Ellis’s work on this commission has focused on capturing the motion and characteristics of each player and embodying the spirit of their combined 30 years representing Manchester City. This initiative is the latest in a series of tributes to key figures forming the Club’s legacy project, first announced in 2019 and directed by Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak. Modern-day legends Vincent Kompany, Sergio Aguero and David Silva were celebrated upon their respective departures from the Club, with each of their sculptures located on the east side of the stadium, in addition to permanent mosaic artworks featured throughout the City Football Academy.

This installation will be located on the west side of the perimeter and will be unveiled on Tuesday morning ahead of a UEFA Champions League meeting with RB Leipzig later that day, where fans will be invited to visit the permanent tribute to an extraordinary era in the Club’s history.

Speaking of his appointment to the project David Williams-Ellis said:

“It is a great honour to create a work of art for Manchester City Football Club celebrating the diverse, talented players, Bell, Lee and Summerbee.

“It’s been an extraordinary last two years, working on this project that celebrates these players from a great era in Manchester City’s football history.

“I hope that the work will give a sense of history and place to the legions of fans and visitors that come to the football ground from around the world and become an enduring part of Manchester’s cultural landscape.”

David Williams-Ellis – Artist Biography

David Williams-Ellis’ sculptures, worked in clay directly from life, are inspired by the romanticism of Rodin and Bourdelle and are noted for their sense of movement and vitality.

David was classically trained in Florence under drawing teacher, Nerina Simi. From there he went on to be an apprentice wood carver and then joined a community of marble carvers beneath the Carrara Mountains in Pietresanta.

David’s reputation was cemented after his time in Italy. Today, his work is in private and public collections across the globe and can be seen in flagship buildings including Scone Palace in Perthshire, Aberdeen’s Maritime Museum, the IFC Building in Shanghai and Oxford House, Swires, Hong Kong.

Amongst his most notable work includes the D-Day Memorial Sculpture, unveiled on 6th June 2019 above Gold Beach in Normandy to commemorate the 22443 service men and women who fell on D-Day and in the Normandy campaign under British command.

Here’s the D Day Memorial:

Khaldoon’s Annual Message: Part Two

The second part of Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak’s annual message to fans has been posted. In this he talks about the following:

  • The expansion of the North Stand at the Etihad Stadium
  • The Mike Summerbee, Colin Bell and Francis Lee statues
  • The success of the Manchester City Academy
  • The progress of the wider City Football Group

https://www.mancity.com/citytv/mens/chairman-2023-annual-interview-part-two-63822846

If you missed yesterday’s here it is:

https://www.mancity.com/citytv/mens/chairman-2023-annual-interview-part-one-63822759

The 2000s: This Week 2008-09

It’s the final part of the weekly series on Manchester City’s seasons from 1999-2000 through to 2008-09. Each week I’ve published here the story of a different season of that remarkable ten-year period. Today we conclude with the largest article on this decade to date. It’s a 11,300 word article on the 2008-09 season (below) – not much happened that year did it? As always, this includes material from exclusive interviews I have performed with various figures associated with the club over the years. The article, like everything else on this site is under copyright and cannot be posted elsewhere without my express permission.

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One Week Today: Free History Talk on Manchester City 2005 to 2009

I’m delighted to say I’ll be performing the next free online History Talk this time next week (Wednesday 29 March at 6pm until 7pm). This talk will be on Manchester City FC between 2005 to 2009. It’ll last about 1 hour and is free to attend but places must be reserved in advance. It will follow a similar format to previous talks I’ve done on the origins of MCFC but this one will specifically focus on the transformational period of 2005 to 2009. I’ll talk about the development of MCFC during the period.

During the 2000s I spent considerable time behind the scenes interviewing and meeting those who played a part in this transformational period. I’ll discuss the development of the club from the dedicated chairmanship of John Wardle, through a season or so of Thaksin Shinawatra and on to Khaldoon Al Mubarak. I will talk about meetings I attended and interviews I performed during this period, including discussions with all three chairmen, plus other significant figures.

This hour will include the opportunity to ask questions as I’m keen to hear your thoughts on these transformational years for the club.

The event will be live on Zoom on 29/3/23 at 6pm and a link will be sent to all those who have registered for the event beforehand (probably earlier that day). THIS WILL BE EMAILED OUT SEPARATELY AND NOT VIA THE EVENTBRITE WEBSITE.

You can register here:

Register on Eventbrite

You must register here if you want to get involved. If you’d like an example of what the talk will be like take a look at:

Video of my online talk on history of MCFC Support/Match Day at Maine Road

The talk will last about 1 hour and will be online on zoom, so you should be able to access it anywhere.

You can see posts about other History Talks here:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/tag/history-talks/

Next Free History Talk: Manchester City 2005 to 2009 on 29 March

I’m delighted to say I’ll be performing the next free online History Talk on Wednesday 29 March at 6pm until 7pm. This talk will be on Manchester City FC between 2005 to 2009. It’ll last about 1 hour and is free to attend but places must be reserved in advance. It will follow a similar format to previous talks I’ve done on the origins of MCFC but this one will specifically focus on the transformational period of 2005 to 2009. I’ll talk about the development of MCFC during the period.

During the 2000s I spent considerable time behind the scenes interviewing and meeting those who played a part in this transformational period. I’ll discuss the development of the club from the dedicated chairmanship of John Wardle, through a season or so of Thaksin Shinawatra and on to Khaldoon Al Mubarak. I will talk about meetings I attended and interviews I performed during this period, including discussions with all three chairmen, plus other significant figures.

This hour will include the opportunity to ask questions as I’m keen to hear your thoughts on these transformational years for the club.

The event will be live on Zoom on 29/3/23 at 6pm and a link will be sent to all those who have registered for the event beforehand (probably earlier that day). THIS WILL BE EMAILED OUT SEPARATELY AND NOT VIA THE EVENTBRITE WEBSITE.

You can register here:

Register on Eventbrite

You must register here if you want to get involved. If you’d like an example of what the talk will be like take a look at:

Video of my online talk on history of MCFC Support/Match Day at Maine Road

The talk will last about 1 hour and will be online on zoom, so you should be able to access it anywhere.

You can see posts about other History Talks here:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/tag/history-talks/