Guardiola: The Catalan leaders' sentence is an attack on human rights Barcelona Nine sentenced to prison

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has spoken out in opposition to the sentence handed to Catalan independence leaders after their imprisonment on Monday.

Spain's Supreme Court sentenced nine Catalan leaders to prison terms ranging from nine to 13 years for, in part, an alleged misuse of funds for their role in the failed bid for independence in 2017.

Guardiola, though, expressed his opinion that the decision is an attack against human rights such as the right to assembly and demonstration, the right to freedom of expression and the right to a fair trial.

"The leaders condemned today [Monday] represent the majority of political parties in Catalonia," Guardiola said in a press release done simultaneously through TV3, the BBC and AFP.

"Spain lives in an authoritarian drift in which anti-terrorist laws are used to prosecute dissent.

"This fight won't stop until the repression stops and we find a peaceful and democratic solution."