Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola expressed his concern about his team's form ahead of their second leg against Real Madrid in the Champions League. With the reigning champions facing Luton Town on Saturday, logic would suggest City would rotate players, but they are locked in a fierce race for the Premier League tie.
Rodri Hernandez had admitted after the match against Real Madrid that he could do with a rest in the coming weeks, despite the lack of space for it in the calendar.
“Rest Rodri against Luton? Look at our games and you'll understand. It's very simple. It's very important because of the quality he gives us, but if a player doesn't want to play, he didn't play,” he explained Guardiola, regarding the potentially resting Spanish star.
“I also have to rest the central defenders, but in the England friendlies, John Stones and Kyle Walker were injured and could not rest. We have a very big problem. I have the feeling that we have been very tired in the last games. Tomorrow we will decide what to do.”
Guardiola will be hoping to have Kyle Walker, Nathan Ake, Kevin de Bruyne and Ederson all back in the side, which should help in his quest to freshen things up at least. Before the first leg, one of the main talking points was that City had played two games between Real Madrid's last encounter nine days earlier. However, the statistics did not support the idea that the Whites were better rested, with The city comfortably surpasses them at the Santiago Bernabeu. Real Madrid also play Real Mallorca on Saturday, about three hours after City.
