Manchester City will have to be wary of multiple competitions when they plan their Premier League defence with a pinch point in February
Man City manager Pep Guardiola has been a vocal critic of the fixture congestion
As far as Manchester City are concerned, the Premier League fixture list only tells one part of their story.
Pep Guardiola is expected to push for success in all competitions, and that can work both ways; victories in cups can help build momentum in the league, but too many games can lead to a drop in performance and crucial points. City always aim to be in contention for trophies when the final months of the season come round, but to do that next season they will have to overcome a monster run of fixtures in January and February.
Between January 25 and February 25, the reigning champions face Chelsea at home, Arsenal away, Newcastle at home, Liverpool at home and then Spurs away. Between the Arsenal and Newcastle matches, they could also play the second leg of a league cup semi-final if they make it that far as well as an FA Cup fourth round tie; realistically, the Blues are looking at at least one extra match.
Then there is the newly expanded Champions League to consider. A group stage that features two more matches and runs until the end of January, means that nestled between league matches against Chelsea and Arsenal will be their final group game.
That could be at home to Shamrock Rovers but thanks to the changes to the competition it could also be a trip to the Bernabeu given City must play two matches against teams alongside them in the top pot. And if they do not reach the end of the group stages in the top eight spots – unlikely but a possibility – they must slot in a two-legged play-off to make the last-16 before the Newcastle and Liverpool matches.
Ten matches over 32 days could go a long way to deciding how many trophies City win, with their relatively gentle Premier League run-in irrelevant if they are not in a position to be able to take advantage of it. While the players are busy in international tournaments, City staff must start planning and preparing for how to navigate this trickiest part of the season.
It has been on the radar for some time, with Guardiola already critical of the competition clashes that have been brought about by cramming more games into the calendar. “Next season when we play the Champions League, [it] is the same week as the Carabao Cup. How are we going to play?” he said. “Will we play the Elite Development Squad in the Carabao Cup?
“After next season we go to the Club World Cup. We are incredibly happy, a lot of money, incredibly prestigious. But how many days do I give off to the players? Two weeks off and start the season again. It’s unsustainable.”
Getting such a tough run of league fixtures around the time of the Champions League play-offs has reinforced the need for City to be more prepared than ever – even if that means a bigger squad than usual – as they get themselves ready for unprecedented additions to their calendar.