Change to fixture demands must be player-led - Guardiola

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says immoderate changes regarding football's expanding fixture demands indispensable beryllium led by the players.

City's Spain midfielder Rodri, 28, said connected Tuesday that footballers are close to going connected strike successful protestation astatine the fig of games successful the calendar.

"If thing is going to change, it indispensable travel from the players. They are the lone ones who tin alteration something," Guardiola said.

"The concern tin beryllium without managers, sporting directors, media, owners but without players you cannot play. They unsocial person the powerfulness to bash it."

In July, Fifpro said it would instrumentality ineligible enactment against Fifa implicit what the planetary players' national called an "abuse of dominance" successful football.

A study by Fifpro said that a subordinate payment 'red line' was playing a maximum of betwixt 50 and 60 matches per season, depending connected a player's age.

This play could perchance tally until 13 July for immoderate clubs, erstwhile adjacent summer's expanded Club World Cup last concludes.

City could play a maximum of 76 matches during the 2024-25 run successful contesting the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, Champions league, Club World Cup and Community Shield - portion galore players volition besides play planetary fixtures.

Chelsea brag Enzo Maresca echoed Guardiola's comments and agreed determination is "no doubt" determination are excessively galore games successful the schedule.

“I don't deliberation we support the players. It's wholly incorrect however galore games [there are]," Maresca said.

"The lone radical who tin bash thing is the players. We tin assistance them.

"I deliberation the past 2 weeks immoderate of the players person explained what they deliberation and I deliberation it's a bully starting point. Some said onslaught could beryllium an thought for them."

Bayern Munich caput manager Vincent Kompany has called for an yearly headdress connected the fig of games a subordinate tin play amid concerns implicit workload.

Kompany's side, similar Guardiola's Manchester City, are progressive successful the recently reformatted Champions League - which present has astatine slightest 2 other games earlier the knockout signifier - arsenic good arsenic the inaugural 32-team Club World Cup that starts adjacent summer.

"To play 75, 80 games, it gets to a constituent wherever it's not realistic anymore," said erstwhile City skipper Kompany.

"The solution I've ever wanted is to enactment a headdress connected the magnitude of games a subordinate tin play arsenic an individual. Put a cap, a compulsory play of holidays [for players]."

Bayern could play up to 64 games this season, and again galore of their players volition besides diagnostic successful nationalist squad games connected apical of that figure.

England skipper Harry Kane played 45 times for Bayern past play and featured 7 times for his state astatine Euro 2024, portion the 31-year-old has already played doubly successful the Nations League for the Three Lions this season.

"It's been a changeless taxable successful caller years - I was portion of the Fifpro players' union, we ever treated that precise seriously," Kompany added.

"As a player, I already called for a maximum fig to beryllium acceptable for the games a subordinate tin play; it should beryllium limited. That mode you support your wellness and the interests of the clubs. And yet besides the coaches, due to the fact that it's not casual for them either. That would marque a batch of sense."

Borussia Dortmund manager Nuri Sahin, a erstwhile subordinate for Liverpool, Real Madrid and Dortmund, believes the concern has reached 5 to midnight - successful notation to the Doomsday Clock which conveys threats to humanity and the planet.

"When players are already talking astir strikes, you cognize it's 5 to 12," Sahin said.

"Coaches similar Jurgen Klopp and Guardiola person besides been complaining astir it for years. But thing has changed.

"If the organisations oregon radical don't interest astir it, past we person to interest astir it."

Similarly, successful 2022, then-Liverpool brag Klopp compared fixture congestion to the clime crisis, saying: "It is similar with the climate. We each cognize we person to alteration but radical are similar 'what bash we person to do?"

Rodri's City team-mate Manuel Akanji joked helium whitethorn person to retire astatine 30 due to the fact that of the relentless fixture schedule.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has called for "a balance", external to beryllium recovered betwixt much shot for supporters and subordinate workload.

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker added players are not being listened to and warned that no-one successful shot is adjacent to a solution to fixture congestion.