Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has given his stars two days off as they bid to refresh before fighting to keep their Premier League title.
For one of very few times this season, City have full week to prepare ahead of Saturday’s visit of Wolves to the Etihad. Had the Blues triumphed over Real Madrid in their Champions League quarter-final, they would have been facing Bayern Munich.
Instead, Guardiola has been given the option to give his squad some time to relax, before the final stretch of their title scrap with Arsenal.
As such, Guardiola has granted his players Monday and Tuesday off to recuperate from a taxing sequence of four games in 12 days, which included the Madrid match, an FA Cup semi-final at Wembley against Chelsea, and two Premier League away fixtures.
City’s stars will all report back for duty at the City Football Academy on Wednesday, where preparations will ramp up ahead of their final four matches.
City’s cause will also be aided by having two of those four games at home, giving them not only the advantage of the crowd but also familiar conditions. At the City Ground, the visitors were less than pleased about the dry state of the pitch as it didn’t suit their style of play.
“It’s been hard, it’s been tough,” admitted Manchester City defender Nathan Ake, reflecting on the gruelling schedule and the impact of travel fatigue after their match. “Even after Brighton, all the travelling and stuff. We could feel it a bit today but now it will be nice to have a few days’ rest and prepare for the next one.”
With Arsenal set to play Bournemouth in an early kick-off this Saturday, City might find themselves trailing by four points when they face Wolves later in the day. The Gunners currently lead the league table by a slender margin, having played one more game than Guardiola’s defending champions.
