The 83-game sprint doesn’t amount to much, but Manchester City are currently preparing for it.
Their season really starts on Wednesday with the introduction of the Champions League, constant midweeks and no rest, from here there is no turning back.
It is reminiscent of the moment Pep Guardiola showed a picture of a mountain on the screen during an inspirational speech to his players after the Treble final, telling them they had hit rock bottom again after reaching the top on Wednesday night by beating opponents Inter.
Given what needs to be scaled now – expanded competitions, an unprecedented number of games – that mountain can feel like a gentle hill.
What they saw became clear during a visit to a Premier League club in August, when the upcoming calendar appeared on the same screen as Guardiola’s highlight reel.
Pep Guardiola’s Man City could potentially play 83 games this season
A PowerPoint blur of color codes for different competitions, week after week, month after month. After barely visible white space for recovery, the eyes of the assembled audience popped out of their heads.
The numbers are staggering and a source of constant chatter in the City dressing room. A possible 73 games for their club, if they reached every final, and another 10 at international level – including games just days before an expanded Club World Cup in June. Their most crowded season was 61 games; Real Madrid’s and Manchester United’s were 66.
This is on a whole other level. It is therefore not surprising that there is a mass of dissidents.
City’s season may not end until mid-July, 12 months after the club reported for pre-season training, and some within the club are already worried about what the 2025-26 campaign will look like.
In discussing the prospect of a strike, Rodri joined a growing number of stars who have spoken out after Alisson desecrated the greater Champions League. Bernardo Silva called the current status quo “absolutely absurd”. Kevin De Bruyne had taken a swipe.
Guardiola, however, could care less. No one can influence these problems in the short term and how players regenerate between games is now the most important marginal gain at the highest level.
Rodri joined a growing number of stars speaking out about the scheme and going on strike
The players are generally no different in quality from the best and so it is the way you use them. City, always freshest in that final sprint to the line, consistently lead the way in that area.
Guardiola and his players have everything they need to succeed. Like the in-built cryotherapy chamber at the City Football Academy – faster and more efficient than ice baths – or dry flotation beds, or their £3,000 zero gravity loungers and multi-sensory sound vibration therapy chairs, all designed to reduce additional stress on the body.
An altitude chamber, where players train on exercise bikes in temperatures of up to 40 degrees, is used intensively. This may have to be increased as the mountain top gets higher.
Some sources put the ability to get the most out of the squad entirely on Guardiola. How he barely bothers to bother with the preparations, how the training is described as ‘short and sweet’, intense, bite-sized sessions.
How he takes more account of advice from the medical department about red zones and workload than his peers. This was evident, for example, when he listened to Rodri and Silva’s requests for rest last year, gave them time off or allowed players longer vacations.
The city has invested £3,000 in zero gravity loungers and multi-sensory sound vibration therapy chairs, all of which are designed to reduce additional stress on the body
The chairs allow you to feel audio, which works like a restorative, calming musical massage as the vibrations pulse through the body
The loungers provide a vibration experience over the entire body, from your back to your glutes and calves
City have incorporated cryotherapy chambers into the City Football Academy – which are faster and more efficient than ice baths. Pictured here are the chambers used by athletes at the Olympics
Footballers and athletes will use these high-tech devices to reduce additional stress on the body. Here, nitrogen gas escapes from a cryotherapy chamber
“I’ve seen players from other clubs come and look at it and think pre-season is relatively easy,” said one source. “It’s just his way. It’s quite interesting.”
Recovery is an area of serious concern for everyone at the top and Guardiola was quick to recognise this, regularly reshuffling his pack. Although he operated as a heavy rotator, he did send a reminder of Inter’s standards. ‘I want to rotate, but they have to prove they are ready to play,’ the Catalan said. ‘I don’t give gifts.’
Even with all that, four of his players – Rodri, Phil Foden, Manuel Akanji and Kyle Walker – played more than 5,000 minutes last year.
The fact that City’s physiotherapy room, where players receive massages and general treatments, has become the centrepiece of the training complex speaks volumes about its importance.
Led by performance director Simon Timson – formerly of the Lawn Tennis Association and UK Sport, a key player in Olympic triumphs – the club places great importance on what happens off the grass.
City’s physio room, headed by performance director Simon Timson (pictured), is where the club places a heavy emphasis on what happens off the pitch.
Phil Foden (left) and Kyle Walker (right) recorded over 5,000 minutes last year
Physical details of international duty are shared between countries – Erling Haaland was even accompanied by his own physiotherapist when he was with Norway – with Gareth Southgate a regular visitor while England was manager.
Some of it bucks the trend. Unlike most of their rivals, when City travel to Bratislava in two weeks’ time for their second European game of the season, they will not return until the morning after, staying in Slovakia.
There will be a light meal before bed – Guardiola and his staff stay up considerably later – and then a quiet recovery session and time in a pool in the morning, rather than flying straight back. Every hotel must have a pool.
That in itself has an effect on the players, who increasingly talk about the mental fatigue of the schedule – with endless nights away from home and family – but the more restful nature of the return journey has major sporting benefits.
These are City’s biggest concerns and it is striking that players who are on international duty in this country will get in the car after the last match of a training camp and travel four hours home. You would think that this would not happen if their club were not there.
Recovery is an area of serious concern for those at the top and Guardiola has seen that through
Guardiola and his players have everything they need to succeed on their training ground
The big plus for Guardiola this time is that City have started like a train. They usually start reasonably well in terms of results, before the adrenaline of the return wears off and they enter a difficult period, but the level of performance is objectively higher this time.
“Most of these games are covered by mental strength,” Rodri said. “You have to try to be strong, to get the machine rolling again by winning or performing well. The beginning of the season was great for us because the earlier you get into this run, the easier it is to continue in the season.
“That’s the key, trying to be as fit as possible and trying to keep the focus and mental health strong. I had a month and then I have to recover a bit, so I had two months and that was great for me to stop and prepare myself.
‘It’s even more important to do these kinds of things these days, not to do an early pre-season. Football is changing in that way. It helps me a lot to stop.’