After City’s first Premier League loss of the season to Bournemouth last Saturday, and a Carabao Cup elimination against Tottenham earlier in the week, Guardiola admitted he has no option but to “just handle it.” The manager pointed out the strain this packed season is putting on his squad, with the demanding schedule set to continue through FIFA’s newly structured Club World Cup, running from June to July 2025 in the United States.
Guardiola likened the packed fixture list to the NBA but noted that basketball players get a four-month off-season to recover, while football players only have a three-week break.
“Previously, we played a lot of games in each season, and when we go to the Club World Cup, reaching the final stages means we’re set to play over 70 games,” he explained to reporters.
He added, “It’s similar to the NBA with 70 games, but the NBA players get four months off, and we only get three weeks. This builds up over consecutive seasons, causing long-term injuries. It’s inevitable, so we just have to manage it and plan training carefully to be as prepared as possible for each game.”
In their 2-1 loss to Bournemouth, Guardiola fielded several players still recovering from injuries, including Manuel Akanji and Nathan Ake. He praised their dedication, saying, “Some players aren’t fully fit but make an incredible effort to be here. Manu and Nathan were struggling; until the last minute, I wasn’t sure Nathan could play, but he insisted, ‘I want to try.’ If we’d had five more days to recover, maybe things would’ve been different. But I won’t use the schedule as an excuse because it didn’t matter when we were winning. Bournemouth deserved their win.”
Kyle Walker revealed he had just six minutes of training ahead of the Bournemouth match, yet Guardiola commended his resilience. “Since the Euros, he’s had maybe five sessions with us, but he’s physically outstanding and managed 90 minutes against several speedy players, which is no easy feat,” said Guardiola.
City are also without their key midfielder, Rodri, who is out for the season with an ACL injury, and Kevin De Bruyne, who has been sidelined with a thigh issue since September. Guardiola provided an update, saying, “Kevin started feeling better yesterday, but it’s been over a month and a half. We’re taking care of him. We need him, and he’ll return when the time is right.”
Looking ahead, City will take on Sporting CP in the Champions League on Tuesday before returning to Premier League action against Brighton on Saturday.
🚨⚠️ Pep Guardiola: “Maybe we go to the FIFA Club World Cup, arriving in the last stages of competitions… and we’re going to play almost 70 games!”.
“70 games is like NBA, yea… but in the NBA they have four months holidays, and we have three weeks!”. pic.twitter.com/TvQjTPJ2jQ
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 5, 2024
Manchester City performance and stats
Manchester City is currently 6th in the Champions League with 7 points.
In the last 4 games, it has won twice, drew once, and lost once. In its last match, Manchester City lost 4-1 against Sporting CP.
It has a positive goal difference after scoring 10 goals and conceding 4.
