Published 18:12 IST, May 28th 2020
Man City facing a nightmare schedule as clubs meet to discuss Project Restart date
Pep Guardiola's side will face fixture congestion if the Premier League returns on June 26, as Man City are still in the Champions League and the FA Cup.
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Man City could find mselves in middle of fixture congestion if FA decides to push Project Restart date to June 26. English top-tier clubs are scheduled to meet on Thursday to decide match list with a Premier League return on cards. Pep Guardiola's side could possibly have to compete in a flurry of fixtures if Premier League return goes through on June 26, as Man City are still in Champions League and FA Cup. Man City also have an extra Premier League fixture to play in that time. Premier League sides Man City, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Sheffield United could be forced to play a total of four games in eight days, if Premier League return is scheduled for last week of June.
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Man City fixtures could give Pep Guardiola's squad a hard time
Premier League bosses like Pep Guardiola, Mikel Arteta and Frank Lampard are apprehensive about back-to-back fixtures. As reported by Sun, Premier League's Executive Chairman Richard Masters is hoping for league to restart on June 19, which will see teams playing only twice a week. However, Premier League coaches and manrs are fearful that crunch timing can affect fitness of ir squads. On Wednesday, Premier League clubs unanimously voted to resume contact training as y are confident about resumption of top-flight football in England.
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Four Premier League clubs could play twice a week
According to Sun, Premier League's final matchday is scheduled on Sunday, August 2, 2020, whereas FA Cup final is set to be held on Saturday, August 8. This means a June 26 restart will leave Premier League teams just six weekends and five midweeks in process. During that period of time, nine Premier League matchdays will have to be played out, including two previously-postponed games — Man City v Arsenal and Aston Villa v Sheffield United. To add to this, FA Cup quarter-finals and semi-finals will have to be adjusted in midweek. A June 26 restart will mean that four teams will have a double-header in same week.
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Man City training
Man City training: Man City's Raheem Sterling concerned about players' fitness
Man City star Raheem Sterling believes Premier League players will require at least a month of training before league kicks off again. Raheem Sterling's claims were backed by leading physio Gary Lewin, who also said that re is a large possibility that Premier League players will pick up injuries if league restarts in June. results of Round 3 of Premier League's coronavirus testing threw up just four positive cases at three clubs in over 1,000 samples.
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18:12 IST, May 28th 2020