Pep Guardiola Plans Shorter Half-Time Talks Following Fines

Pep Guardiola, Manchester City manager has announced plans to shorten his half-time team talks after the club was fined £2.09 million for repeatedly starting matches late and delaying resumption after half-time. The club admitted to breaching Premier League rules 22 times “without good reason.” Consequently, Guardiola addressed the situation briefly, stating he would aim to make his half-time speeches shorter.  His comments came ahead of Manchester City’s pre-season match against Chelsea in Columbus, USA.

Meanwhile, with a reduced squad following Euro 2024 and Copa America, Guardiola has given significant playing time to Norway striker Erling Haaland, who missed the summer tournaments due to Norway’s failure to qualify. Notably, Guardiola noted that Haaland, who had been dealing with “muscle niggles,” is feeling much better and is hopeful he can play some minutes.

Additionally, Pep Guardiola avoided discussing rumors linking striker Julian Alvarez to Atletico Madrid, as Alvarez is currently competing in the Olympics in Paris with Argentina. Instead, Guardiola shared his admiration for Chelsea’s new manager, Enzo Maresca, a former member of his staff. He praised Maresca’s achievements, including leading Leicester City to Premier League promotion and now managing one of England’s top teams.

In conclusion, Guardiola expressed his pleasure for Maresca’s success, highlighting his deep belief in his managerial philosophy. He described Maresca as an “incredible, lovely person” and wished him continued success, emphasizing that Maresca’s commitment to his ideas would lead to future accomplishments.