Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has weighed in his players and warned them against overeating and drinking during the Christmas holiday.
Guardiola has made it crystal clear that any player who returns out of condition after the short festive break will be excluded from the squad for this Saturday’s match against Nottingham Forest.
To make sure the players take this message to heart, Guardiola even refused to grant them a day off after City’s comfortable win over West Ham United last Saturday.
“The players asked me for a day off. I said, ‘No, because you didn’t play well enough’,” Guardiola said.
“So we had recovery training last Sunday, working with the players who didn’t get on the pitch. Then they have three days off, followed by two days of preparation for the game against Nottingham Forest,” he added.
Guardiola stated, “Every player will be weighed. They will be back on the 25th, and I will be there to check how many kilos they have put on, to see if they are overweight. They can eat, but I want to keep their weight under control.”
Guardiola said he has to select the squad for the December 27 clash against Nottingham Forest. “If a player is in perfect shape now but then gains three kilos, he will stay in Manchester and won’t travel to Nottingham for the game against Forest.”
