Guardiola to do shorter team talks after £2m fine

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says he will make his half-time team talks shorter after the club were fined for repeatedly being late to start matches and after half-time.

The club accepted they breached Premier League rules 22 times “without good reason” and were fined £2.09m.

When asked to comment on the situation, Guardiola said: “I just read it in the news. I would try to do my speeches at half-time shorter.”

He was speaking before Saturday’s pre-season match against Chelsea in Columbus, USA.

With so few senior players at his disposal after Euro 2024 and the Copa America, Guardiola has given significant minutes to Norway striker Erling Haaland after his national team failed to qualify for the summer tournament.

Guardiola, who previously said Haaland had “muscle niggles”, said: “He woke up and feels much better. And hopefully he can play a few minutes.”

Guardiola refused to comment on rumours that Atletico Madrid are in talks for striker Julian Alvarez, who is currently away at the Olympics in Paris with Argentina.

But he reseved some kind words for his opposite number Enzo Maresca, who was a former member of his staff but is now managing Chelsea.

“I’m really pleased for him,” Guardiola added. “We spent a special year together.

“He is an incredible, lovely person. And his family too.

“He did a really good job – unbelievable – at Leicester: promotion to the Premier League and now he is in one of the top five, six teams in England.

“And I wish him the best because he deserves it. Nice people deserve the best.

“And as a manager he has success because he has the most important thing. To be a manager is believing something deeply but, really, deeply, deeply.

“And whatever the results, I stick with my idea. And that’s why he believes in what he does.

“And he will have success. I don’t know how long, but he will have it.”