Coach Pep Guardiola does not let his players practice much, for fear of overload and injury.
"Before the match against Liverpool, we only trained 15 minutes with the ball and 10 minutes on defense," Guardiola told Goal on November 27. "If we trained normally, we wouldn't have players to play."
Guardiola is concerned that training straight after the international break could overwork his players and cause injury. He has restricted his players to a maximum of 35 minutes of training after returning to Man City, a practice he has maintained for seven years. On the other hand, Guardiola also wants to keep players on the pitch while the team has a lot of injuries and illnesses.
Pep Guardiola (right) shakes hands with Jurgen Klopp after Man City drew 1-1 with Liverpool in round 13 of the Premier League on the evening of November 25, at Etihad Stadium. Photo: EPA
In the 1-1 draw with Liverpool on the evening of November 25, Kevin De Bruyne and Mateo Kovacic were both absent due to injuries. Jack Grealish was also absent due to a stomach ache. Guardiola did not even make any substitutions, although John Stones, Josko Gvardiol and Rico Lewis were all on the playing list. The Man City manager admitted that he did not want to take any risks with Stones. He wanted another week or two for the English defender to get used to the heavy training sessions again.
Guardiola also believes Liverpool have the advantage of training 15 days more than Man City before the 2023-2024 season. Liverpool end the 2022-2023 season on May 28, while Man City end the season on June 10, when they beat Inter 1-0 in the Champions League final.
"You know 15 days is a lot or a little, right?" Guardiola asked. "Compared to us, Liverpool have 15 more days to train with the new players."
At the Etihad Stadium on November 25, Man City started better. After 27 minutes of play, Erling Haaland's shot bounced off goalkeeper Alisson's hand and into the goal, opening the score for the home team. However, Man City still lacked a bit of luck to finish the match. After playing at a disadvantage, Liverpool unexpectedly counterattacked to equalize in the 80th minute. Mohamed Salah passed the ball to Trent Alexander-Arnold, who entered the penalty area and shot diagonally, scoring, surprising the Man City defense.
After the draw with Liverpool, Man City lost the top spot in the Premier League to Arsenal. Guardiola's team is currently second with 29 points, one point behind Arsenal and one point ahead of Liverpool. Aston Villa also has 28 points, but is fourth due to an inferior goal difference.
Thanh Quy (according to Goal )
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