Pep Guardiola Defends Manchester City Fans Following Pitch Invasion Against Swansea on Sunday

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has defended the clubs fans after they invaded the pitch at the final whistle in their match against Swansea on Sunday.

This season's Premier League champions will receive a fine from the FA for failing to control their fans, as the crowd stormed the pitch at the Etihad at the conclusion of their 5-0 victory over Swansea.

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It was City's first game since they were crowned champions a week earlier, following Manchester United's defeat to West Brom, and with some using that sense of occasion to justify the fans wanting to celebrate the title victory with each other and the team.

Guardiola has spoken in defence of the guilty fans at the Etihad Stadium, insisting that they had every right to celebrate in the way that they did.

“Football is an emotional game," said Guardiola, as quoted by the Mirror. "I understand you have to be careful, but they feel they want to share that they are happy.

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“It's better they stay where they should stay, but I'm not going to tell them 'don't do that'. If they are happy, I like to be close with them. They show how happy they are and that's the most beautiful thing. We felt that today. The fans here were so happy," he continued.

City secured the title with five games remaining, and their victory on Sunday took them to 90 points, five behind Chelsea's Premier League record high of 95 - and with 12 points still up for grabs, the Manchester side could easily make that record their own. 

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They are also set to break the record amount of Premier League wins in a season, currently on 29 with the record at 30. And the the record amount of goals, with a tally of 98, just five off of the 103 scored by Chelsea in 2010. 

It has been an impressive campaign for Guardiola's side, and the Spanish coach understands that it is a time to celebrate.

“It's time to celebrate it. I'm not going to tell anybody 'don't enjoy it'. I'm not going to tell them," he said.