MANCHESTER-. Pep Guardiola He told the best football players that they are the only ones who can force a change in the growing dispute over the number of matches they should play.
The midfielder of the Manchester City Rodri He said the players are close to par due to the increasingly congested schedule and that will increase next year with the expanded Club World Cup in the United States.
The City manager said on Friday that the sporting stars might “have to do something” if they wanted to fight back.
“If something is going to change, it must always come from the players,” Guardiola acknowledged. “That business (of football) may not have a coach, sporting directors, the press, or the owners, but without players it cannot be played.”
The players’ union has already filed a legal challenge against FIFA over the expanded Club World Cup, which will feature 32 teams for the first time next year, up from the current seven. The tournament will be held during most leagues’ off-season in June and July.
Players’ union FIFPRO expressed concern about the increasing physical and mental demands on players, but the European Club Association, which represents Europe’s top clubs, welcomed the tournament.
English and French unions filed lawsuits against FIFA in the Brussels Commercial Court in July over the “unilateral decision on the international match calendar” set by world football’s governing body.
The Champions League has also been expanded this season and will feature two more matches.
Rodri played in 10 different tournaments in 2022-23 when the calendar was congested by the World Cup in the middle of the season. Last season he played 64 matches for his club and the Spanish national team.
City will finish the season with the Club World Cup, which will include seven more games if City reach the final.
Rodri, nominated for the Ballon d’Or, said that the strike is necessary to encourage action.
“If things continue like this, I think we will reach a point where we will have no other choice,” he admitted. “It is something that worries us because we are the ones who suffer.”
Bayern Munich coach Vincent Company believes a limit on the number of games a player can play in a season should be implemented to limit demand for top players.
With the 2025 Club World Cup, the world’s best players will have three consecutive years of major competitions in the off-season, with the Euro and Copa América this summer and the World Cup in 2026.
