Pep Guardiola has admitted a major worry ahead of Manchester City’s Carabao Cup clash against Liverpool.
Manchester City face Liverpool on Thursday night in the Carabao Cup, just a few days after the World Cup has finished. Both clubs will have players involved in the final on Sunday, and the majority of their squads have played some part in the tournament as a whole.
The World Cup can be a physically and emotionally draining experience for players, so they will naturally need rest once they return home.
Guardiola has now admitted he is concerned ahead of their Carabao Cup clash as he has “no players”.
“We have no players. Four or five players [are here] so we have to see how and when they [all] come back. We are in a difficult [position]. We don’t have players but the big brains in football made this schedule so we are going to play this game,” said Guardiola, speaking to Manchester City’s media team, as relayed by Manchester Evening News.
Guardiola appears to have taken a dig at the powers that be who decided to schedule this fixture so soon after the World Cup. The Spanish manager certainly has a point, and the decision to allow this game to go ahead certainly has no consideration for player welfare.
The World Cup being in the middle of the season was bad enough, but to expect players who were playing in Qatar just a few days previous to be able to feature in this game is completely unfair.