LOYALTY CARD

Guardiola: Last season's slump would've meant sack in Madrid

- TYRONE MARSHALL

PEP GUARDIOLA has a long memory when it comes to Real Madrid and he did not miss a beat when he got the chance to remind the local media of a jibe they used to throw at him.

The Catalan has never been a popular figure in the Spanish capital and, when asked what advice he would offer an under-pressure Xabi Alonso, who finds his job on the line after just 27 games, Guardiola rehashed a comment that was once famously uttered about him.

Back in the days of his famous battles when Jose Mourinho was boss at the Bernabeu, Guardiola was accused of "p***ing cologne" in relation to the sense of superiority that Madridistas felt he carried. And on his return to Madrid last night, Guardiola turned the insult on its head, as he offered his backing to Alonso.