After Real Madrid take on Athletic Club on Sunday evening, Carlo Ancelotti will have nine days to prepare for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final showdown with Manchester City, last season’s champions in the competition. This is because they are off next weekend because of the Copa del Rey final, taking place between Athletic and Mallorca.
By comparison, Man City will play three times before their trip to the Santiago Bernabeu, against Arsenal (Sunday), Aston Villa (Wednesday) and Crystal Palace (next Saturday). This is something that has greatly frustrated head coach Pep Guardiola, as he told the media ahead of the Arsenal match, as per Diario AS.
“We play Aston Villa at 20:15, then at 12:30 against Crystal Palace on Saturday, at 12:30! Then we go to Madrid on Tuesday. Real Madrid have nine days to prepare, nine days! They play this weekend and won’t play again until our game. I would like to reflect and ask for one more day, because the difference is great. But there’s no chance…”
You can certainly understand Guardiola’s frustration, as Real Madrid should, in retrospect, be much fresher than Man City for that first leg at the Bernabeu. In a tie like that one, small margins could make a big difference.
