Man City star Rodri says players 'close' to striking before Newcastle United clash
Manchester City’s midfielder Rodri hinted at a player-driven strike if the relentless fixture schedule continues ahead of their trip to Newcastle United on September 28.
The Ballon d'Or contender is preparing for Manchester City’s match against Inter Milan on Wednesday evening in the newly formatted UEFA Champions League which sees the group stage extended from the traditional six-game group phase to eight with the potential for more fixtures in a ‘play-off’ for several teams before they even reach the knock out stage.
City will compete in five competitions this season with hopes of winning the Premier League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup, Champions League, and Club World Cup - which will be held next summer with 32 teams set to compete. Last season, the Sky Blues played two fixtures to secure World honours, but this time, it will be more demanding with seven games scheduled.
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The 28-year-old Spain midfielder explained: "I think we are close to that,” when asked whether players will strike.
“It's easy to understand something general, you ask any player, he will say the same. If it keeps this way, it will be a moment that we have no other option, but let's see."
When further pressed on what the ideal number of matches was, he continued to say: “I don’t have an exact number. From my experience, I can tell you that 60-70 [is no good]. No. Between 40 and 50 is the amount of games in which a player can perform in the highest level. After that, you drop because it is impossible to sustain the physical level."
He added: “This year, we can go to 70, maybe 80, I don’t know. It depends how far you go in the competitions. In my humble opinion I think it is too much. I think we have to take care of ourselves. Someone has to take care of ourselves because we are the main characters of this sport or business or whatever you want to call it. Not everything is money or marketing; it is also the quality of the show. When I am not tired I perform better and if the people want to see a better football, we need to rest.”
In fairness to Rodri, he was one of the most utilised players in Pep Guardiola’s side for the past few seasons; he played 2,937 minutes in the League alone last term. And by all means, if Rodri was to sit out of the Cityzen’s trip to St James’ Park, that would be greatly received by the Magpies’ faithful, however unlikely that may prove to be.