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Competitions need to be trimmed from the calendar not expanded, according to the Manchester City boss
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola believes a 400 or 500-day year would be required for Champions League expansion because Premier League clubs already play too many games.
The European Club Association (ECA) and UEFA are said to be in talks about adding another four matchdays to the Champions League schedule, which would result in finalists playing 17 games.
However, with City’s trip to Sheffield United on Tuesday their eighth game in the past three and a half weeks, Guardiola is an advocate of taking a scythe to the gruelling schedule in England.
“I think the solution is you have to make a year of 400 days, that is a solution, 400 or 500, more or less. After that we can book another competition. Maybe UEFA or FIFA can talk about it. We have few days a year, that’s the problem,” said Guardiola.
Champions League expansion would likely have negative ramifications for the EFL Cup.
After stating the EFL Cup “wouldn’t be interesting” if Premier League sides withdrew in order to lighten their loads, the former Bayern Munich and Barcelona offered a more ruthless alternative.
“Eliminate competitions. Take them out completely – so less games,” he said.
“Less games, less competitions, less teams, more quality, less quantity. The people are going enjoy it. The people are going to go to the theatre, to the cinema, restaurants, to watch the fireworks. That is what they would do.”
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At the crux of Guardiola’s argument is a desire to reduce the physical workload on players as the City boss suggested serious injuries sustained by Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford since the turn of the year were a result of the excessive demands.
He said: “There are less games [in Germany in Spain], much less than here. In the Bundesliga there are 18 teams not 20, one cup not two. They have a break, in Spain they have a break.Tthe cup is run with one game, not two. So it’s a big difference.
“It’s just to protect the players … For them they’d enjoy it more, the people too. People say they can’t live without football, they can live without football for a while. It’s too much, honestly.”
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