Axel Meunier, Media365, published on Thursday September 26, 2024 at 3:15 p.m.
After Rodri’s recent major injury, Pep Guardiola spoke about the increasingly overloaded calendar for the players. The Spanish tactician even made a radical decision for the rest of the English cups.
While Manchester City have had an almost perfect start to the season, with a Community Shield won in the Manchester derby, an unbeaten record in all competitions in the Premier League and Champions League, as well as qualification for the next round of the English League Cup, some bad news has tarnished the picture. Indeed, Rodri, Pep Guardiola’s key player, was injured during the match against Arsenal. After undergoing several tests, the 28-year-old midfielder is suffering from a ligament injury in his right knee that will keep him out of action for at least six months. As a result, the Skyblues will have to do without their metronome for the rest of the season. The Spanish tactician had recently ranted about the players’ overloaded schedule, and the physical and psychological burden it could cause them on a daily basis. For example, without counting international matches during the breaks, Manchester City could play up to 76 matches during the 2024-2025 season if they win the Champions League and the Club World Cup next summer.
A B team against Tottenham in the next round?
Following this terrible blow, Pep Guardiola decided to take a radical decision by indicating his desire to field a B team in the next round of the Carabao Cup: “The next round, I’m telling you, I’ll be playing with the B team. We’re not going to waste energy, believe me. We always play to qualify. We never throw away a competition, never. But yesterday, we had only played 50 hours before.”he said after the Citizens’ narrow victory against Watford (2-1) on Tuesday in the last sixteen of the Carabao Cup. News that should please Tottenham supporters, Manchester City’s future opponent in the English League Cup on October 30.
