Manchester City players are set to undergo a Christmas weigh-in to check they have not eaten excessively during the holidays, amid warnings from manager Pep Guardiola that he will rule out those who have gained pounds.
On Saturday (20), City enjoyed a comfortable 3-0 victory over West Ham, who are fighting to stay in the Premier League, and are maintaining pressure on leaders Arsenal.
But Guardiola, who won six league titles with Manchester, is famous for being demanding and revealed on Monday (22) that his players were weighed before a brief rest for the holidays.
“Each player weighs himself,” said the Spanish coach. “They come back on the 25th (December) and I will be there monitoring how many kilos they have gained, (to see) if they are gaining weight.”
“As soon as they arrive after three days, I want to see how they return. They can eat, but I want to control them,” he added.
Guardiola has warned that players who return to the club overweight will not play against Nottingham Forest on December 27.
“Imagine a player who is now perfect, but who will arrive with three extra kilos. He will stay in Manchester,” he said.
Guardiola stressed that it is also important for players to rest during a tight schedule as he heads to Barcelona for a brief break.
“The players have to go with their families and forget about football. It’s good. For them, seeing the coach every day is very hard”, he assured.
The City manager also denied his players a day off after Saturday’s victory, unhappy with the level of performance despite their fifth successive league win.
“The players asked me for a day off. I said: ‘No, because they didn’t play well enough’,” he said.
