Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted he gained more than a few kilos as he let loose over the Christmas break.
The Catalan instructed his players to switch off, rest and recuperate this week as he gave the Manchester City first-team three days off after their 3-0 win over West Ham – though he warned them against taking liberties and going overboard with their festive celebrations.
Guardiola is known for holding his players to the highest standards and several stars who have played for the 54-year-old has cited how dangerous being overweight can be for a player’s prospects under the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager – the best example being Kalvin Phillips.
Speaking to the press after the 3-0 win over West Ham last week, Guardiola admitted he will be keeping an eye on his players’ weight upon their return to training later in the week as City search for an eighth consecutive win in all competitions against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Several Manchester City stars, including an always funny Erling Haaland, took to social media this week to share snapshots of their Christmas celebrations with friends and families, with the Blues earning a well-deserved break in the backdrop of a fine run of results in recent months that has raised their prospects of finishing the campaign with silverware.
At the heart of City’s purple patch in recent months has been the club’s new architect-in-chief Rayan Cherki, who has been providing for fun for the likes of Erling Haaland and Phil Foden since joining the Blues for £34 million from Lyon in June.
Cherki has been a regular starter since returning from injury in October and keeping the 22-year-old France international fit and firing as the season progress could be key to Manchester City’s title aspirations.
The young playmaker has received huge plaudits for his technical prowess and creative heroics in recent months, forging strong relationships with the likes of Haaland and Foden, who are reaping the rewards of playing alongside a talent who has been hailed as a potent successor to Kevin De Bruyne at the Etihad Stadium – the compliment of all compliments.
“The sky is the limit – the people say that, right? It depends on his limits, what does he want to become – he can achieve it because of course he’s an incredibly talented player,” Guardiola said on Cherki in conversation with Manchester City’s official channels this week.
Guardiola went on to admit that while his squad have maintained their standards over the festive period so far, he himself has put on more than a few kilos.
“I earned four or five kilos more (over Christmas) for the amount of food and drinks that I have drunk – so it is really good,” the Manchester City manager said.
“They (the Manchester City squad) have been incredibly disciplined (over Christmas) since 10 years ago. Last season, for injuries we had, was a little more difficult, but always they behaved unbelievably,” he added, as quoted by PA.
“All the players I had in the last decade and that’s not an exception today. “We have a standard as a club, everybody knows exactly what they have to do.”
City can briefly go top of the table with three points over Forest at the City Ground on Saturday afternoon, with Arsenal facing Brighton at the Emirates Stadium later in the day.