Manchester City have advanced to the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the seventh consecutive season. However, Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, expressed his frustration with the Premier League’s match scheduling during Champions League weeks.
Guardiola had previously voiced his frustration when City had to face Manchester United on Sunday, only three days before their last-16 second leg against Copenhagen in Europe.
He noted that no other country requires its teams to play on a Sunday when they have European matches on Wednesday.
Despite City comfortably defeating the Danish side 3-1, securing a 6-2 aggregate scoreline, Guardiola persisted in expressing discontent about the scheduling post-match.
“Talk to the Premier League? They would say ‘We pay a lot of money, shut up!'”
Guardiola implemented seven changes to his lineup against Copenhagen after the 3-1 victory over United in the Manchester derby, ahead of a pivotal Premier League title clash against Liverpool on Sunday. Despite this, he refuted suggestions that he was resting players for the Anfield trip, emphasising his serious approach to the second leg against Copenhagen.
“I knew how tired my players were. In some countries when you play on Wednesday they allow you to play on Saturday. I needed fresh legs, people who can sustain a match like this.”
City will discover their upcoming opponents in the Champions League quarter-final draw scheduled for March 15th. Alongside City, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, and Paris Saint-Germain have also secured qualification for the next round, while the remaining four ties are set to be played next week.
For now, Guardiola and the Citizens have a small matter of negotiating their way past league-leaders Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday afternoon.