Ander Herrera admits he didn't deliberately spit on the Manchester City badge back in 2018 - but concedes it may have made him more popular with the Manchester United fans.
The incident occurred more than four years ago at the Etihad during a game that could've seen City crowned champions for the first time under Pep Guardiola. They led 2-0 at the break thanks to goals from Vincent Kompany and Ilkay Gundogan and looked in cruise control.
As United trudged off the pitch Herrera cleared his throat, but did so by spitting all over a large City badge that was directly in front of the tunnel. His actions caused a huge stir after the contest, which saw the Red Devils stage a remarkable comeback to win 3-2.
Herrera is adamant though that his antics were not deliberate. He told the UTD podcast : “No I didn’t. Honestly, I didn’t [mean to] do it. I wanted to beat them (City). I wanted to destroy them, the same as Liverpool. But I respect (them). The same as I want my badge to be respected, I do the same for the others.
"I didn’t do it on purpose, and I say that after the game. (I may have) even created some fans (among the United supporters) after that, but I have to be honest, I didn’t do it on purpose."
He added: “I was so angry. We were losing 2-0. I was so angry, and I was just thinking about how we can fix that, and I didn’t do it on purpose. And after that, we won 3-2, if I am not wrong. They couldn’t celebrate the league in front of us, which was very (relieving). I love it because they had the T-shirts prepared and they couldn’t (wear them).”
At the times of the incident a United spokesperson said: “Ander has seen the footage of the incident and is mortified at any suggestion that his actions were deliberate. It was entirely accidental and there was no intent whatsoever.” City though felt it was, in fact, deliberate, but opted not to complain to the FA.
Herrera was signed by Louis van Gaal back in 2014 and went on to play at Old Trafford for five seasons, making 189 appearances along the way. He won the FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League before leaving for PSG on a free after his contract expired.
The Spaniard has confessed he was expecting the club to offer him a new deal: “To leave, it was difficult because six months before, five months before, I was expecting that offer for me to stay. I don't want to, it's not the moment to talk bad about anyone and I am not going to do it, but after my third season with the club I expected a little bit more from the club at that time. I got the Player of the Year award by the fans and the club didn't call me that summer to sign a new contract, and they did with other players. That was painful for me, honestly."
