Abdukodir Khusanov had a forgettable Manchester City debut in their 3-1 win over Chelsea.
A calamitous back pass from the 20-year-old debutant in the third minute gifted Nicolas Jackson the chance to set up Noni Madueke’s early goal.
Khusanov looked nervous for the majority of the game. He struggled with the pace and intensity of Chelsea’s attacks and clearly lacked synergy with his fellow defenders.
The Uzbeki centre-back was ultimately substituted at the 53rd minute and looked understandably dejected as he felt guilty of letting his team down.
The 20-year-old was, however, given the right kind of support in the Manchester City dugout.
With his new teammates yet to get into the right terms with Khusanov, a non-playing staff member was seen hugging the youngster to raise his spirits up.
This individual is Pep Guardiola’s ‘enforcer’ Manel Estiarte, who has been part of his support staff since 2008!
Who is Manel Estiarte?
The unique aspect about the 63-year-old is he has never played professional football.
Instead, Estiarte made an iconic career in water polo. He is regarded as the ‘Lionel Messi of the pool’ for enjoying a sensational career 20+ year career.
Estriate made his international debut for Spain in Water Polo at the age of 15.
At the age of 18, he participated in his first Olympics in the 1980 Moscow Games. He ended the games as the highest goalscorer.
Estriarte won the silver medal with the Spanish Water Polo team in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. It was here that he also met with Guardiola for the first time.
At the ripe age of 35, the Spaniard achieved Olympic glory, leading Spain to gold at the 1996 Summer Games. This triumph was followed by a World Aquatics Championship gold in 1998. A legend of the pool, Estriarte helmed the Spanish Water Polo team for two decades, leaving an indelible mark with a staggering 1,561 career goals.
Estiarte has been working with Guardiola since he took over as Barcelona head coach in the 2008. He even helped the Spaniard obtain a lawyer when he was entangled in a doping scandal in 2001, while playing for AS Roma.
Manel worked closely with Pep during his time at Barcelona, where he obtained the position of the ‘head of external relations’. As part of this role, he was responsible for maintaining Barcelona’s friendly relations with cultural, civic and social organisations.
When Pep joined Bayern Munich in 2013, Estiarte moved to Germany with him and worked as his personal assistant.
Manel has stayed as a part of Pep’s backroom staff throughout his Manchester City tenure.
Pep shares a very close relationship with the 63-year-old. He even wrote the foreword of Estriarte’s autobiography ‘All My Siblings’ in 2009, where Manel opened up about seeing his sister Rosa commit suicide in front of him. The 63-year-old is currently married with two children.
Guardiola has been full praise of Estriate’s impact in helping him succeed at Manchester City. He told Sky Sports about the water polo icon in 2022: “Manel takes care of me, that is enough for him. He is a friend of mine for many, many years. For many, many. He was the best athlete in his sport. He has an incredible sense of what is happening in the team. Not about the tactics but what is happening in the team, what we need, what we are looking for.
“It helps me a lot, especially in the bad moments. We share our sadness. Our sorrow is always together. And, of course, in the good moments too. He has a role, an important role in the club. He is an incredible person for my family. For the club as well.”
Estriarte is officially the ‘director of player support and protocol’ at Manchester City. His official responsibility is to look into the players’ well-being, providing them with the necessary help when they are going through rough patches. He’s also there to intervene if he feels a player’s commercial or media appearances are being significantly prolonged.
Manel’s helpful nature and likeable personality have made him a beloved figure at Manchester City. A source described his reputation among the players, telling ESPN: “The players love him. They respect him enormously and know they can come to him about anything. They respect him because of what he has done. He was a sportsman himself. But not just an ordinary sportsman.”
Estriarte is there to be the motivator for any Manchester City player feeling a bit down in spirits. The 63-year-old might not be a tactical genius like Guardiola, but considering how Pep considers him his ‘guardian angel’, it highlights the sheer importance the water polo legend at the Etihad Stadium.
