Manchester's roads are getting so bad even Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola are complaining about them.

Now Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has called on the government to give our region greater powers to help ease the gridlock .

Last month it was revealed Manchester is the most congested city in the UK outside of London.

On Tuesday, United 's Champions League tie against Valencia was delayed when the players' coach got stuck in a traffic jam caused by the Regent Road roadworks.

And last week, City boss Pep complained Manchester's traffic is making his players late for training.

Mr Burnham believes the answer is to give Greater Manchester more control over its roads, railways and buses, in a similar way to cities such as London, Berlin, Madrid and New York.

He said: “Congestion has reached a tipping point – it’s causing major problems across Greater Manchester, making people late for jobs, school and even footballers late for their matches.

“It’s also affecting the quality of the air we breathe, which is a major public health issue.

“We’ve been tasked by the Government to deliver a Clean Air Plan which tackles congestion and reduces air pollution, but we cannot deliver this plan without further powers and funding over a range of areas including roadworks, highways and rail.

“Major cities including London, Berlin, Madrid and New York all have these powers, but Manchester lags behind, so I’m calling on government to give us these powers now and fulfil its promises to the North.”

(Image: PA)

Mr Burnham says congestion is costing the region an estimated £1.3bn annually.

He wants the government to:

Devolve Highways England powers to Greater Manchester to coordinate roadworks more effectively

Give Transport for the North more control over rail franchises 'making certain that the summer of rail chaos is never repeated'

Let Greater Manchester reform and improve its deregulated bus network ' as quickly as possible'

Grant powers to enable better local management of roads, including a lane rental scheme to charge utility companies for roadworks; reduce moving traffic offences (such as drivers blocking yellow box junctions) and control obstructive pavement parking

Introduce national legislation for taxis

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “The Government is focused on delivering better journeys for people across the country, underlined by our record £23 billion funding for road schemes – the biggest investment in a generation.

"This will help cut congestion, shorten journey times, and boost economic growth.

“We have successfully devolved powers to a number of metro mayors, including Greater Manchester. Local leaders can use a share of the £840m Transforming Cities Fund to plan and invest in public transport in their cities.”