Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has had his say on Crystal Palace potentially resting players against Arsenal
08:21, 13 May 2026
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola
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Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has had his say on Crystal Palace potentially resting players for the clash with Arsenl(Image: CameraSport via Getty Images)
Pep Guardiola instructed the Premier League to avoid interfering with Oliver Glasner's team selection ahead of Crystal Palace vs Arsenal on the final day of the season.
The Gunners visit Selhurst Park on what could prove the title-deciding occasion and Glasner has indicated that Palace might rotate players before their Conference League final three days afterwards.
This has prompted questions regarding the competition's integrity, with Arsenal potentially receiving assistance on the final day - should the title race extend that far - through the arbitrary fixture allocation and Palace's European success.
Glasner has rejected such suggestions as ridiculous and Guardiola supported the Austrian by insisting he should be permitted to select whichever team he prefers for each of his remaining three matches without external intervention.
"Leave the managers to do what they have to do," the City boss stated. "The less the Premier League is involved in all the decisions, will be better for all of us.
"So, leave it all over, so the managers do what they have to do. No problem."
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City will be aiming to extend the title race to the final day, beginning with victory over Palace tonight to reduce the summit gap to two points with merely two matches remaining.
Success at Bournemouth next Tuesday would take the title race to the last fixture and the Blues have accumulated experience from numerous campaigns regarding how tense the final day can prove, even for a team in command.
Regardless of where City finish, Guardiola wants to avoid blaming referees, opposing sides or external factors should they fail to overtake Arsenal.
Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola of Manchester City
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Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola are battling out the Premier League title race(Image: (Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images))
And, as Palace's manager emphasised, he must prioritise what serves his football club best irrespective of how it affects the title contenders.
"I don't know what we're doing yet," Glasner said. "Maybe we'll be playing with the same line-up that we'll play against Rayo [Vallecano].
"It feels like the league title (may be) decided on the last day, but at the end, it's a result of 38 matchdays and everybody gets what they deserve. To be honest, if somebody criticises (me for this), it would be nonsense.
"It's (not) just the last game. There were 37 games played before and that means if another team rotated against City or Arsenal, they affected the title race as well.
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"I'm not responsible for Arsenal, and I'm not responsible for Manchester City. I'm responsible for Crystal Palace, and I get paid for doing the best things for Crystal Palace."
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