Jose Mourinho claims 'diversity' of opinion caused Manchester derby tunnel fight after City's 2-1 win over United

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Jose Mourinho believes that a difference of opinion led to the ugly scenes that followed the Manchester derby on Saturday, but refused to directly respond to Pep Guardiola’s admission that he supports Manchester City’s large celebrations at Old Trafford.

A melee in the players’ tunnel shortly after the match stemmed from City celebrating their 2-1 victory over Manchester United with loud music inside their dressing room. It’s believed that Mourinho went to the away dressing room to express his unhappiness with the celebrations, which he felt were over-the-top, before players and staff from both teams became involved in a scrap.

It’s understood that no punches were thrown, but City assistant manager Mikel Arteta ended up with a cut near his right eye and Mourinho is believed to have been drenched in milk from the carton that was thrown at him.

However, after Guardiola expressed his belief that City were right to celebrate in the manner that they did given the importance of the victory that gave his side an 11-point lead in the Premier League table, Mourinho refused to comment on his rival’s words. He did explain though that the disagreement came from a “diversity” of opinion.

“The only thing I can say is that for me it was just a question of diversity, a diversity in behaviours, diversity in education, just that and nothing more than that,” Mourinho said ahead of Wednesday’s Premier League trip to Bournemouth.

“Nobody likes to lose once, nobody likes to lose twice – I think that’s something every team in the world feels. When you lose a match, in the next one you have that little bit extra to give.”

Guardiola held his press conference just a few minutes before Mourinho, in which he confirmed that City have already given their evidence to the Football Association for their investigation into the matter. He, like Mourinho, would not elaborate on any of the details behind the saga, but did take the blame for encouraging his players to celebrate in the manner that they did – though showed no regret for doing so.

“We were inside [the changing room], it is normal,” Guardiola said. “We didn’t do anything exceptional, we did what we did in the past and what we will do in the future.

“The image can speak for itself. What happened after the game, it was a normal celebration.

“I am the guy who encouraged them to celebrate between each other. And that is what we did.

"And after what happened, hopefully it cannot happen again.”

Guardiola would not explain what happened to his assistant Arteta, who it’s believed suffered the cut when a plastic bottle hit him in the face. The former Arsenal captain arrived for training on Monday morning shielding his right eye so that photographers could not see any wound.

When asked whether the fracas overshadowed City’s performance in the derby, Guardiola was adamant that the importance of the victory still managed to get through to those watching.

He said: “People talk, people talk. The game was good, we played our way and we could have scored more goals. In the end, they could have drawn, they could've won.”