Pep Guardiola believes changes to gruelling playing schedules will only happen when players themselves take action.
The Manchester City boss pointed to the example of the Spain’s women’s team and the changes that have occurred at the country’s football federation after its now-former president Luis Rubiales kissed forward Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the medal ceremony after they won the World Cup in August.
At his press conference ahead of City’s Premier League trip to Wolves on Saturday, Guardiola was asked about comments made by Burnley manager Vincent Kompany, his former captain, who said appearances within a season should be capped for top players.
Guardiola said: “I would say every idea that you reduce a little bit the amount of games for the players would be nice. But there’s not going to be change.
“There is only one solution to change something – the players decide for themselves, (to say), ‘Stop, we have to change something’. And after, FIFA and UEFA will maybe react a little bit.
“This business, the show must go on. Without Pep? Keep going. But without the players, the show will not go on, that’s for sure. So it depends on them, they decide if they accept.
“Look what happened in Spain with the women’s team. The players decided they had to change something and they changed it. They did it. The best legacy they have done is that.
“The women’s team in Spain did it. I don’t know (if), in world football, the men’s, they are able to do it.”
He added: “When we have a break it has to be a proper break. This is my point of view.
“I always use the example of the NBA. They play 80 games in a few months but then have three or four months off. You can regenerate. Then after, full (on).
“The problem here is it is full (on) and after we have three weeks off. For me it’s a lot. But it’s my personal opinion.
“I don’t want to influence, because I’m not going to influence anyone. I think it has to be the players. If the players want to change something, they are the only ones who can do it.”
Saturday’s match at Molineux could see Matheus Nunes face his old club after leaving Wolves to join City last month.
It was reported at the time that Nunes had stopped training with the midlands outfit ahead of the move, but Guardiola said on Friday: “When I spoke to him…he said to me, ‘I never, never, ever said I’m not going to train’.”
On the reception Nunes might receive from the crowd on Saturday, Guardiola added: “Hopefully he is strong to accept the situation.”
Guardiola was also asked for his thoughts on the allegations surrounding his old club Barcelona.
In March, Spanish prosecutors filed a complaint and UEFA announced it was opening an investigation into Barca after it was reported the club had made payments to companies owned by Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, the former vice-president of Spain’s referees committee, between 2001 and 2018.
Police on Thursday searched the headquarters of the committee in relation to the case. Barcelona deny any wrongdoing.
Guardiola, who was Barcelona boss from 2008 to 2012, said: “Wait and see…let the justice, the process (run).
“So far what I heard…I didn’t see or read, because I’m out of that, but I didn’t see Barcelona really, really, really, really pay a referee to take a benefit. I didn’t see that, I didn’t read it.
“That’s why I want to wait before have an opinion, because Barcelona is going to defend what they have to do, and we will see.
“What I’m pretty sure is when Barcelona won, it was because they were better than the opponents. That I’m pretty convinced about right now – in our day.
“We won because we were far better than our rivals. And when they were not, they don’t win, they lose. But justice will decide what really happened.”
Erik ten Hag backs under-fire Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has insisted he has full confidence in Andre Onana and said there would be nothing to be gained from taking his under-fire goalkeeper out of the spotlight.
Onana’s form is once again under scrutiny after the Cameroon goalkeeper was culpable for two of Galatasaray’s goals in Wednesday’s costly 3-3 draw in Istanbul, as United surrendered a two-goal advantage to leave their Champions League fate out of their hands.
But Ten Hag has strongly defended his £47million summer signing, a player he previously worked with at Ajax, and pointed to statistics showing that Onana is second in saves made, save percentage and goals prevented in the Premier League.
“Players always need trust,” Ten Hag said. “After Alisson he is the best stopper in the league from preventing expected goals. You deserve to play.”
Onana has played in every game for United this season, with Ten Hag opting not to rest him even in the League Cup. That means Turkish stopper Altay Biyindir, a summer signing from Fenerbahce, is still awaiting his debut.
Asked if Onana might benefit from a break, Ten Hag said: “It won’t help him. I have trust in Tom (Heaton) and Altay, clear. But Andre, you see after Alisson, he prevented the most expected goals in the whole league.
“In the Champions League, he has so much experience with Ajax and last year with Inter Milan. Last year he was with (Manuel) Neuer and (Thibaut) Courtois the best goalkeeper, so he is a great keeper.
“He has the potential, so we have to work on him so that he does it consistently and we will work with him and we will support him. The manager, coaches and players all support him.”
That support was not obvious in Istanbul, when United players did not go over to Onana at the final whistle as he threw his gloves to the floor in disgust at his own performance.
But Ten Hag insisted that was not a sign that his players might be losing confidence in their goalkeeper.
“That will not happen,” he said. “This dressing room is together. Football is a game of mistakes and everyone can make mistakes. But this team has to cover that so we will operate.
“Nobody is undroppable, that is also clear. We have a strong belief that he will help us win trophies.”
Onana is expected to be called into Cameroon’s squad for the Africa Cup of Nations in January, having resolved a dispute with head coach Rigobert Song that saw him quit international football following last year’s World Cup.
Onana could miss four Premier League matches if he is called in, with some reports suggesting the 27-year-old is now concerned he could lose his place in the United side during that time.
Asked if any decision had yet been taken over his participation, Ten Hag said: “When they call him, he has to go. But we are in talks.”
Marcus Rashford will be available again for United’s trip to Newcastle on Saturday after missing the midweek drama through suspension.
Alejandro Garnacho, who has been in electric form with two goals in two including last weekend’s outstanding bicycle kick against Everton, prefers playing off the left side in the same position as Rashford, but Ten Hag said it was no problem to accommodate players in his side.
“Against Copenhagen they were both in the team, against Everton they were both in the team and now ‘Rashy’ was suspended,” he said.
“‘Rashy’ can play from the right and he likes to play from the right, but he can also play through the middle and he can play from the left, so he is really multi-functional.”
Mauricio Pochettino understands reason behind early struggles for Moises Caicedo
Mauricio Pochettino admitted Moises Caicedo’s international commitments with Ecuador have complicated the midfielder’s early Chelsea career.
The club paid a British record £115million to sign the 22-year-old from Brighton in August but frequent trips to South America to play for his country have limited the time he has been able to spend working with coaching staff at Cobham.
He has played 14 times in all competitions since his arrival, recovering from a red card on his first appearance against West Ham to become a steady if not yet spectacular performer in the heart of midfield.
Since joining Chelsea he has been called up three times by Ecuador and played in six matches, with each international window requiring a more than 11,000-mile round trip, sometimes not arriving back in London until the early hours of the day before Chelsea’s next game.
He revealed in an interview with the club’s website this week that he spent much of his first 10 days in England alone in a hotel room in tears and suffering from homesickness, after joining the Seagulls from Independiente del Valle in his home country in January 2021 during the Covid pandemic.
Restrictions on movement for people arriving into the UK meant he was unable to meet his Brighton team-mates until completing a period of quarantine, during which he phoned his parents in Ecuador asking to return home.
He recovered to become one of the standout successes of the team that Roberto De Zerbi led to a club-best sixth-placed Premier League finish last campaign, sparking a bidding war between Liverpool and Chelsea in which Pochettino’s side were victorious.
The manager reiterated a call for patience as Caicedo navigates life at Chelsea amid a hectic World Cup qualifying schedule internationally.
“When we signed him we knew what is going to happen,” said Pochettino. “He’s an emotional guy, an emotional player that needs time to recover.
“It didn’t help also the international games, travelling to Ecuador, to South America. That is really tough every single month, two or three weeks then go 10, 12 days away, then come back sometimes with some injury.
“It’s not an excuse but it’s the reality. Now we need time. Of course I say (the team) always need to perform. That is our mentality. But in some situations like his, we need to give time and not to be unfair in the way that we assess him.”
Caicedo has formed a reliable partnership in midfield with Enzo Fernandez, who the club paid a then-British record £107m to sign from Benfica in January while Graham Potter was in charge.
Pochettino revealed that the Argentinian World Cup winner asked for extra time off during the summer due to fatigue and was granted permission to join up late with the squad on their United States tour.
“It’s different because Enzo arrived last January, he was with different coaches here,” said the manager. “He asked when we arrived for a period of holiday because he was tired after the World Cup and everything. He joined us in North Carolina.
“I cannot judge the past. Only I can talk from when we arrived (at Chelsea). We expect all, not only (these two), all the players, even the ones not too much involved, to push their level.”
Ange Postecoglou knows he can succeed at Tottenham by sticking to plan
Ange Postecoglou has cited the early part of Manchester City’s journey under Pep Guardiola as a reason why he has total conviction in his ideas at Tottenham.
Spurs have hit their first real rough patch under the Australian with three straight defeats coupled with a list of absentees which has reached double figures.
Postecoglou remains determined to stick with his attacking approach and could again line up with no recognised centre-back or defensive midfielder at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
While many would adopt a more pragmatic style against City, the Tottenham boss will double down on his philosophy and believes the best clubs stick to the plan when faced with hurdles.
“I’m sure the players are thinking ‘is this really going to work against Man City?’ And those are justifiable questions that they need to ask,” Postecoglou explained.
“My role is to show them that this is still the way forward for us as a group. If we’re ever going to bridge that gap to being a successful side, we have to believe in the football we want to play.
“Even though the last few results haven’t been great, I don’t think the players have felt like they struggled out there.
“They still felt there were parts of the game when we were dominant, so they can see when we’re on it and we’re doing things right, even with so many absences, we’re still a very good football team. I don’t feel like it’s at a point where I’m losing people.
“There are plenty of coaches that coach very differently to me, but they’re at that club for four or five years and they have that success. That’s what I’m talking about with a plan.
“It’s not about just playing one way or having a clear identity. Having a plan means getting the right people involved in the club who you believe will take you where you want to go.
“Then you invest in them, in the club, in the squad and you stick to that plan. It doesn’t mean that’s just exactly the same as anyone else.
“City are different to Arsenal, Arsenal are different to Liverpool, Liverpool are different to both of them but as far as I can see they have the same managers and they’ve gone through tough times.
“They saw something in them. You have to show something, it’s not just about blindly appointing someone and saying you’ve got five years, but those managers have shown they have a plan and the club have said ‘let’s back these people.’”
Postecoglou is no stranger to difficult periods, especially at the beginning of his tenures after exiting the Champions League at the start of his Celtic reign, while he faced a relegation battle with Yokohama.
He reiterated how much he enjoys these challenges ahead of this weekend’s trip to last season’s treble-winners.
Postecoglou added: “I think I enjoy it after when you come out the other side! Nah, I love it, mate. I love it. I don’t think anyone goes into management, or anything you do in life, thinking it’s going to be smooth.
“There’s going to be some rough moments and you’ve got to be prepared for that, you’ve got to enjoy that. The alternative is I’m not in a job and I’m sitting on my couch with no pressure on me and no one questioning anything.
“I’m at a fantastic football club, I’m in the best league in the world, getting challenged every week. Why wouldn’t I be enjoying it? The reason I think I really relish them is because my belief gets tested on a daily basis, whether internally or externally.
“Even internally people will always ask those questions, ‘can you do this? Are you able to continue playing this way?’ or ‘is it working or is it not working?’ All those kind of things.
“When I lay my head at night, I just believe in it. I get up the next day thinking I feel strongly about it. Maybe I’ll end up in a heap, mate, I don’t know, because there are no guarantees. But my gut tells me that I won’t. I enjoy it.”
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