Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says his team must be ready to ‘suffer’ in the Florida heat when they face Juventus in their final Club World Cup Group G match on Thursday.
Both City and Juventus have the maximum six points from their opening two games and have booked their place in the last 16 but top spot remains up for grabs.
The heat, which has caused problems at several venues, is expected to be around 33 degrees celsius (91 degrees fahrenheit) for the game at Camping World Stadium which kicks off at 3pm local time.
Guardiola suggested his team line-up would be made with multiple second half changes in mind. “I’m making the selection tomorrow [Thursday] thinking about the second half because in these conditions we can’t play at our rhythm,” he told reporters.
“But all the teams have to handle it, so it is what it is. For the next World Cup, people will know [about] it already, but we have to be ready to suffer. My advice to people is to bring water, hats and towels,” he added.
Guardiola has rotated his squad so far in the tournament and will be without the suspended Rico Lewis and Argentine teenager Claudio Echeverri, who has an ankle injury which is likely to keep him out for the rest of the tournament.
The Spaniard addressed a viral video which showed the City manager playing beach football with some of the players near the team’s base hotel in Boca Raton, South Florida.
Managing workload
Guardiola said it was simply a case of balancing the workload for his team after a long season.
“The end of the season was so demanding emotionally. It wasn’t the best for consistency and results. I decided we’d do good training but let the players relax for the rest of the day,” he said.
“If they want to play golf, go to the pool, on a day off be with their families (that’s fine) otherwise it would be so difficult mentally. It’s to keep it fresh in the training sessions, not expending energy before the games because it would be so tough. We didn’t lose physical condition after the season.
“Some went to their national teams and didn’t have days off. It’s maintaining (fitness) and relaxing. We have 11 months ahead of us. I decided for them to do whatever they want,” he said.