Pep Guardiola: 'Barcelona should not have played'

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has questioned former side Barcelona's decision to play Sunday's clash with Las Palmas behind closed doors.

The La Liga leaders played in front of a deserted Camp Nou after their request to have the match moved to a later date was rejected by league chiefs.

Barca were instead forced to stage the fixture, doing so with none of their supporters present in an act of defiance on a day that saw violence break out around the region as the Catalan independence referendum took place.

Amid the ongoing political tensions Guardiola, who spent over two decades at Barca in various roles, claims that he would have refused to play.

"I would not have played the match," he told Catalunya Radio. "And if we did have to play it, then not behind closed doors. We don't want them to think that we dislike Spain.

"Spain is an incredible country, with its literature, sport and cities. But there is a need to understand that there is a population which wishes to decide its own future."

Barcelona went on to win the match 3-0 to maintain their healthy five-point advantage at the top of the table.