Pep Guardiola sends sarcastic message to Premier League as Man City boss demands delayed start after Club World Cup

The Manchester City boss claimed that the Premier League had denied the club’s request to push the start of 2025-26 back a couple of weeks. The club are scheduled to play in the newly reformed FIFA Club World Cup at the end of the season and the City boss believes his players are not being allowed enough time to rest and recover. Guardiola was keen to air his grievances in a rather sarcastic manner, althoughBBC Sport contacted the Premier League, who said no official request to delay the season had been made.

Speaking ahead of City's clash with Fulham on Saturday, Guardiola said sarcastically: "The Premier League has not allowed us to postpone the first two games for our recovery. Thank you so much.

"I think the club asked the league to postpone one or two or three weeks so we can have a holiday after the [Club] World Cup but it is absolutely not allowed. The Premier League say yes to us? No. Absolutely not."

Guardiola’s concerns come amid a rising tide of players complaining about fixture congestion. City’s Rodri threatened that players could go on strike if their concerns are not addressed, warning that playing up to 70 games a season would take a toll on their health and fitness. The Spanish midfielder then injured his knee ligaments against Arsenal and will be out for most, if not the whole, season.

After playing in the Champions League in midweek, City now host Fulham at the Etihad hoping to pounce on any slip-up Liverpool may make in the earlier Saturday kick-off against Crystal Palace. City will also be keeping an eye on the score at the Emirates as Arsenal host Southampton ahead of the international break.