Manchester City exited the FIFA Club World Cup at the last-16 stage earlier this week
Pep Guardiola looks on following Man City's Club World Cup exit
Pep Guardiola looks on following Man City's Club World Cup exit(Image: PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA/AFP via Getty Images)
While Pep Guardiola will no doubt be pleased not to have to put his Manchester City squad through an even more rigorous FIFA Club World Cup schedule, the exit at the last 16 stage didn’t come without some significant drawbacks.
City were beaten 4-3 after extra time in the Orlando heat against Saudi Arabian Premier League side Al-Hilal on Tuesday, with the defeat bringing the curtain down on the club’s participation in a competition which has drawn criticism for adding to an already packed schedule for players.
On the back of a gruelling domestic season that saw them also have to contend with Champions League football, additional workload for his squad before pre-season kicked off in earnest was acknowledged by the City boss when quizzed on Jurgen Klopp’s criticisms of the competition last week, although he remained diplomatic about the club’s involvement.
He said: “Once we are here, we are proud. Many, many teams complain about these competitions because they are not here, otherwise they might love being here.
“They would have their media and supporters here, and there would be income to be here, and they would be happy to be here. Of course, it's not an ideal situation for the manager.
“Would I love to have two months to prepare for next season? Yes. Would I love to be refreshed for next season? Yes. But it is what it is. And we deserve what we have done in the past to be here. Once we are here, let's do our best possible.”
City’s performance in the league phase of the competition, where they won all three of their games and had the benefit of coming from the region that had the biggest TV market pool, saw the club earn $51.7m (£38m) in prize money, a sum significantly greater than what would have been achieved during a normal pre-season tour thanks to $1bn prize pot put up by FIFA as a carrot for teams to take it seriously.
The overall prize fund for winning seven games on the spin comes in at a whopping $125m (£92m), which isn’t too far off from the prize fund scooped by Paris Saint-Germain for winning the Champions League last season.
It was access to cash that only one other Premier League club, Chelsea, could lay claim to, it also provided the club with the chance to boost their coffers into a new financial year, one where they will be looking to kick on after what will be a dip for 2024/25 due to the comparative lack of success compared to 2023/24, when City won the Premier League and Champions League.
The defeat for City has left some £54m on the table, and while the club can take some comfort from the significant sums earned, the defeat to Al-Hilal has opened up a clearer path for Chelsea, who face Brazilian side Palmeiras in the last 16 on Saturday, to eye the top prize.
Such a boost for the west London side would significantly aid their PSR position for the new financial year and embolden them to continue to pursue a transfer strategy they feel will move them closer to competitive success and becoming Premier League title challengers in the near future. The additional funds they could get their hands on could indirectly impact City’s own pursuit of domestic success given that it puts a club who had been out of the picture in more recent seasons firmly back in it.