Roberto De Zerbi has said that he disagrees with one thing Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said recently.
After going through two big games in the Champions League and FA Cup, the Manchester club will be returning to Premier League action on Thursday with an away match against Brighton & Hove Albion.
In the buildup to this game, the Seagulls manager shared one thing he has disagreed with Guardiola about.
De Zerbi dismisses Guardiola claim
Speaking in his latest press conference ahead of tomorrow’s clash at the AMEX Stadium, De Zerbi said this after Guardiola said that his players were incredibly tired in last weekend’s FA Cup match as a result of playing 120 minutes against Real Madrid just three days earlier.
He said: “They are tired? I think not. They played Saturday against Chelsea, tomorrow is Thursday and they are used to playing so many games.”
Having made 846 accurate passes throughout their 1-1 draw against Carlo Ancelotti’s side last week and racked up 33 shots at goal in total, to then lose on penalties, we feel that this would have taken a lot out of the City players, physically and mentally.
To then go and travel to Wembley three days later and play in a semi-final, it’s understandable why Guardiola felt his players were not in the best shape to play against Chelsea, especially when they have one of the smallest squads in the Premier League.
Is De Zerbi right to question Guardiola?
While De Zerbi is right that City are used to playing a lot of games throughout the season, this situation of playing 120 minutes and then having to play at Wembley just three days later is something that any side would struggle with, in our opinion.
Looking ahead to Thursday’s game, hopefully everyone in the City squad will have sufficiently recharged and will be fresh again to push towards potentially winning another Premier League title.
