 "‘I want to control them’: Pep Guardiola opens up on weighing Man City players after holidays")
Pep Guardiola has said that his Manchester City players will be weighed when they return to training after the Christmas holidays to make sure they are fit enough for the Premier League match against Nottingham Forest on December 27.
Manchester City ended their pre-Christmas schedule with a comfortable 3-0 win over West Ham on Saturday. Guardiola revealed that his players were weighed before that match as well and had met the required fitness standards.
Guardiola warns his players
The City manager made it clear that the same checks will be done again when the players report back to training next week. “Every player makes a weight. They come back on the 25th and I will be there controlling how many kilos come up, (to see if) they come fatty,” he said.
Speaking after the West Ham game, Guardiola said he wants to closely monitor his players after their short break. He said players are free to enjoy their time off and eat what they like, but only within limits. He also warned that anyone who returns overweight will not be selected to travel for the Forest match.
“The moment they arrive after three days I want to see how they come back. They can eat but I want to control them. I have to make a selection for (December) 27 against Nottingham Forest. Imagine one player and now he’s perfect but he will arrive with three kilos more. He will (stay) in Manchester. He will not travel to Nottingham Forest,” Guardiola added.
Back in 2016, when he had first taken up the job, he had even kept some players away from first-team training until they met certain weight targets. Guardiola has also faced criticism in the past for his comments on fitness. He previously apologised to midfielder Kalvin Phillips after publicly saying the player was “overweight” when he returned from the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
In terms of the league table, Manchester City are currently two points behind leaders Arsenal, who beat Everton 1-0 on Saturday. City face Nottingham Forest next before travelling to Sunderland for an away fixture on New Year’s Day.
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