By Lori Ewing
MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) – Players could be close to strike action over the amount of games they are required to play, Manchester City midfielder Rodri warned on Tuesday on the eve of their Champions League opener against Inter Milan.
Expanded Champions League and FIFA Club World Cup formats, alongside enlarged national team competitions, has made for a greater number of games for top teams and players, and Rodri is the latest to say the workload is too great.
“I think we’re close to that (striking),” Rodri told reporters. “It’s the general opinion of the players, and if it keeps this way, we’ll have no other option. I really think it’s something that worries us. We are the guys who suffer.”
The optimal number of games “in which a player can perform at the highest level,” the Spaniard said, is between 40 and 50.
“After that, you drop because it’s impossible to sustain the physical level,” he added. “This year, we’re going to go until 70, maybe 80 (games), depends on how far you go into competitions.
“I think it’s too much. We have to take care of ourselves, because we are the main characters of this sport or business. Not everything is money or marketing, it is also the quality of the show. When I rest, when I’m not tired, I perform better. And if people want to see better football, we need to rest.”
Last season, the 28-year-old’s campaign extended through to Spain’s European Championship victory on July 14, along with City teammates Kyle Walker and Phil Foden, who finished runners-up with England at the tournament in Germany.
City defender Manuel Akanji half-joked recently that he may have to retire at 30 because of the gruelling schedule.
“It’s so tough,” the Swiss player said. “You don’t just think about this season — but also next season. Let’s say we win the league or cup, then go to the final of the Club World Cup; the Community Shield is three weeks after. So when do we have holidays?”
City host Inter Milan in a repeat of the 2023 Champions League final, won by the English side as part of their first-ever treble. It is one of eight first-phase games, followed by a potential playoff before the last 16 kicks off.
City manager Pep Guardiola said his tactics for the new format will be to simply “win our first game, then the next one, then we will see.”
City forward Erling Haaland could overtake Cristiano Ronaldo as the fastest player to reach 100 goals for a single club, having scored 99 goals in 103 appearances in all competitions — including nine in four league games this season.
Ronaldo netted 100 in 105 matches for Real Madrid.
“I played for 11 years and scored 11 goals. This guy (Haaland), in four games he’s scored nine,” Guardiola said with a laugh.
“The opponents will find a solution (to contain the Norwegian), and we have to find a solution to beat them, to find a way.”
Rodri said Haaland’s blistering start to the season is a great example of the importance of rest. The striker had much of the summer off as Norway did not qualify for Euro 2024.
The new 32-team Club World Cup in the United States, meanwhile, ends on July 13, about a month before the next Premier League campaign kicks off, which will then lead into the 2026 World Cup.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing)
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