Pep Guardiola tells his Manchester City players they must get eight hours sleep, and report at 9am day after games for cool down session
City stars have taken to sleeping at the Etihad campus so they are fresh and ready for training the next day
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PEP GUARDIOLA’S players eat, sleep and breathe football.
The Manchester City squad are totally immersed in Guardiola’s methods, which includes advice to sleep EIGHT HOURS a night to make sure they are ready for training sessions.
Some players even kip at the Etihad Campus after games instead of going home.
So much for the old days of going out on the town to celebrate a victory. Guardiola wants players reporting back at 9am the day after matches for a ‘cool down’ so getting rest on site can be easier than driving home and returning in the morning.
It is totally optional but also shows how the Pep Effect has changed things for players such as Kevin De Bruyne in just five months in charge.
But it also helps that the £200million training complex is more comfortable than any hotel.
One first-team player says the Etihad food is “on a par with any restaurant in Manchester.” So there is no need to dash after training.
There are days off for the squad but time to put the feet up are scheduled around the plan to finish top of the Premier
League and get the most out of each player.
Guardiola said: “I don’t judge a player for himself, I judge with how he plays with others and the way we want to play.
“I try to be with the players when the situation is not quite good.
“It is about how they react and here they are really good.
“There are many players who just play when the situation is going well.”
Things did not go well last weekend when City conceded four against Leicester, with Pep’s defence getting a pasting.
Win or lose, it was still one of the biggest nights of the year in Manchester, with anyone who is anyone partying around the Anthony Joshua fight.
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But how many City players were spotted out on the town? None. Like many managers, it is thought that Guardiola takes a dim view on private lives becoming public.
As the ex-Barcelona manager revealed last week, his own personal time is often spent watching Netflix, which accounts for him calling Arsene Wenger the “commander in chief”.
He also uses golf as his own way of de-stressing and is pretty good, too, playing off a single-figure handicap.
He goes to the driving range to practise but you cannot imagine football being far away from his thoughts 24/7.
On matchdays, Guardiola holds a session on the morning of the game with his final plans.
Players tend to know if they are in the team from shape work but the line-up is not announced until after the last team meeting on the day of the game.
And even then, plans can change.
It is understood Guardiola made a late switch for the win over West Ham in August after Hammers boss Slaven Bilic went for three centre-backs.
Aside from smashing a few golf balls, he never stops thinking about football — and his players are not far behind.