Pep Guardiola has made it clear that the Carabao Cup will not be a priority for Manchester City this season, citing the grueling fixture schedule as a key reason his squad can’t handle the extra strain.
After Manchester City’s win over Watford in the Carabao Cup, where he rotated heavily and fielded a number of young players, Guardiola emphasized his intent to continue this approach in the competition. The match saw 16-year-old Kaden Brathwaite make his debut, Nico O’Reilly earn his first home appearance, and Jacob Wright come off the bench. James McAtee also made his first start at the Etihad, with Guardiola making a total of nine changes to the lineup. In fact, even a halftime substitution between Jeremy Doku and Savinho was pre-planned to manage player workloads.
The game came just 49 hours after City’s hard-fought draw with Arsenal, a quick turnaround that Guardiola says makes resting senior players in the Carabao Cup essential.
“For the next round, I’ll tell you now: I will play the players who have had fewer minutes or use the second team,” Guardiola stated bluntly. “We are not going to waste energy on this competition, for sure.”
He added, “If we have a lot of injuries, we play the second team. If the whole squad is fit, it’s a good competition to maintain rhythm.”
Guardiola, who has been an outspoken critic of the congested schedule, echoed the sentiments of midfielder Rodri, who recently called for players to strike over their increasing workloads. For Guardiola, relying on City’s academy and rotating the squad in competitions like the Carabao Cup is not just a strategy—it’s a necessity.
“The schedule is the schedule, we have no choice but to manage it this way,” he explained. But Guardiola also pointed to the positives of rotating his squad: “For players like [James] McAtee, Matheus [Nunes], Jack [Grealish], and Phil [Foden] who haven’t played much recently, this competition is perfect. For the young lad, Kaden [Brathwaite], who is just 16 years old, it’s a great opportunity. And it’s good for Stefan [Ortega] and the others to get minutes and maintain rhythm.”
Despite making such widespread changes, Guardiola insists that City still approach every game with the intent to win, noting the club’s four consecutive Carabao Cup titles in recent years as proof they take the competition seriously.
“We always play to go through; we never throw away a competition,” he said. “But with the Premier League and Champions League, I’m not going to take risks with players in this competition after such a short recovery time.”
Ultimately, Guardiola is focused on the long-term objectives, with an eye on keeping his squad fresh for bigger challenges ahead. The Carabao Cup may offer valuable game time for younger players, but for Guardiola, preserving his key players for the Premier League and Champions League is the ultimate priority.
