Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has explained his frustrations with the Premier League when it comes to scheduling matches during Champions League weeks.
Guardiola had previously expressed frustration that City had to play Manchester United on a Sunday, just three days before their last-16 second leg against Copenhagen in Europe. He said no other country forced its teams to play on a Sunday when they were in European competition the following Wednesday. City eventually beat the Danes, winning 3-1 for a 6-2 aggregate score, but continued to complain about the scheduling after the match.
Guardiola told a press conference: “Talk to the Premier League? They’d say ‘We pay a lot of money, shut up!’ » Guardiola made seven changes to his side against Copenhagen following the 3-1 win over United in the Manchester derby, as his side face Liverpool on Sunday for the Premier League title. The manager, however, denied resting his players for the trip to Anfield, insisting he was taking the second leg against Copenhagen very seriously. “I knew how tired my players were”he added.
Tired players
“ In some countries, when you play on Wednesday, you are allowed to play on Saturday. I needed fresh legs, people capable of supporting a match like this. » City have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the seventh consecutive season.
City will know their next opponents in the Champions League quarter-final draw on March 15. Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain have also qualified for the next round, and the remaining four matches will be played next week.
