SOCCER: Guardiola farewell turns Man City parade into celebration tinged with heartache

Manchester City's trophy parade and after-party on Monday (May 25) blended celebration with sentiment, as fans honoured a season of success and said goodbye to Pep Guardiola.

A day after Guardiola's final game in charge after a trophy-laden decade, thousands lined the streets in searing 31 degrees Celsius heat and clouds of sky-blue confetti, crowding every vantage point for a glimpse of the Spaniard who had defined an era.

The League Cup and FA Cup trophies captured this season gleamed atop the open-top buses, but it was the 55-year-old Guardiola -- waving and smiling -- who drew the loudest roars.

Players sprayed champagne as the open-top buses eventually fed straight onto the arena floor where a sold-out crowd of 17,000 waited to celebrate at the After Party at the Co-Op Live arena.

And then a collection of former and current players, from Vincent Kompany to Fernandinho and Jack Grealish, plus Guardiola's three children, Maria, Marius and Valentina, and Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher, paraded Guardiola's 20 trophies one by one across the stage.

Guardiola departs having delivered trophies and style in equal measure, but also something less tangible: a connection that left adults in tears and teenagers wishing for another decade.

-Stefan Haskins/Reuters