Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, has criticised the Premier League for putting his team at a disadvantage in their pursuit of Champions League qualification.
City are scheduled to play in the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace at Wembley on Saturday. Just 72 hours later, they will host Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium in a crucial league match.
Guardiola revealed that the club had asked the Premier League to reschedule the Bournemouth game by 24 hours to allow more recovery time, but their request was rejected.
He pointed out that a similar accommodation had been made for Tottenham Hotspur, whose fixture against Aston Villa was moved to Friday to ensure parity in recovery time ahead of their Europa League final against Manchester United.
“I would prefer to play on Wednesday – definitely. We’ve been fighting against this situation every single season for nine years. We’re going to play on Tuesday night, against an intense, physical and powerful team,” Guardiola told reporters.
“Bournemouth are playing for the Europa League, and we have to deal with that. Tottenham play on Friday – and this is what we should do.
“It doesn’t change much to play Wednesday instead of Tuesday, but they [the Premier League] decide.”
City remain in the hunt for both domestic and European success, but Guardiola’s comments underscore ongoing concerns about fixture congestion and scheduling fairness.