“It’s not tiredness” – Pep Guardiola rejects Manchester City fatigue talk in domestic treble hunt

“It’s not tiredness” – Pep Guardiola rejects Manchester City fatigue talk in domestic treble hunt Guardiola insists Man City players are not tired: “It’s just the last games of the season” City face Crystal Palace on Wednesday night in a must-win Premier League fixture Blues can cut Arsenal’s lead at Premier League summit to two points by beating the Eagles Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has dismissed suggestions that his players are running on fumes in the final weeks of the season. City are vying for a domestic treble in the last fortnight of the campaign, having lifted the Carabao Cup at Wembley in March and set up an FA Cup final clash with Chelsea this weekend by coming from behind to beat Southampton in the semi-final in April. The Blues are also fighting Arsenal tooth and nail in the Premier League title race, with a chance to cut the Gunners’ lead at the summit to two points when they play their game in hand against Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night.

Manchester City vs Crystal Palace (Premier League): Match Preview, Team News, Stats, Head to Head, How to Watch The question of squad fatigue has loomed over City’s run-in given the sheer volume of fixtures they have navigated since March, with Guardiola addressing the subject in a press conference ahead of Wednesday’s meeting with Crystal Palace. A lot of games but Man City players not tired, says Pep Asked whether his players are pushing through tiredness in the final stretch of the season, the Manchester City said: “No, it’s not tiredness. It’s just the last games of the season and yeah, it’s one week and a few days.

So a lot of games in this time and next one is Crystal Palace. ” The distinction Guardiola draws is a subtle but important one. Tiredness implies a depletion of resource that affects performance: what he is describing is simply the reality of a congested schedule at the end of a long campaign, something every club at this stage of the season is managing in equal measure.

Pep tells the Premier League: “Let managers do what they have to do” Guardiola was rather less measured when asked if clubs should be wary of facing teams with rotated or weakened squads at this point in the season – a question that appeared to touch a raw nerve given the ongoing debate about Premier League scheduling and fixture management. “Leave the managers to do what they have to do,” he added. “As less the Premier League is involved in all decisions, it will be better for all of us.