'I give up' - Guardiola says Carabao Cup prioritised over Champions League

Pep Guardiola criticised English fixture scheduling after being handed an FA Cup fifth-round tie at 8pm on Saturday, leaving minimal recovery time before City travel to face Real Madrid on Wednesday. He complained that opponents in Spain and France receive tailored help, noting Real Madrid’s game against Celta Vigo was moved to Friday while Paris Saint-Germain have had league fixtures shifted or postponed to aid their continental preparations.

Guardiola said he has stopped trying to influence the decision-makers. "Here, it is more important what happened in the Carabao Cup than the Champions League games for the English teams. It happened since day one. So it's no surprise," he told reporters. "I don't pay much attention but I gave up a long time ago.

When we won the treble, it was completely the same. So I'm not going to call, even though in 10 years here I know that a lot of my colleagues from all generations do. I don't ask for anything and if we play at 8pm, we're playing at 8pm. Playing at night, we can travel on Saturday.

England

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