Pep Guardiola mulling ban of hotel stays before home matches
Manchester City’s manager Pep Guardiola continues to take unique steps to alter the club’s culture.
In what he hopes will lay the foundation for years of success, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola continues to implement rules and establish new norms. This time, Guardiola’s considering prohibiting hotel stays for players on the eve before home matches, The Telegraph reports.
The now mastermind of City has engineered similar injunctions during his reigns at Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Although the measure is partial to Guardiola — it’s rather commonplace for players to meet in hotels the night before a match throughout Europe — the Catalan believes permitting his men to spend the night at home before engaging in battle at the Etihad the next day translates to good results on the pitch.
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There is some evidence to suggest Guardiola’s strategy works. Despite some initial cynicism, the policy overall was popular at the sides hailing from the Camp Nou and Allianz Arena. Apparently Xavi is a ardent proponent of the change when playing at Barcelona. Drawing from a quote from the midfielder, The Telegraph notes:
"“For me, two of the most important novelties were the move to the training ground and getting rid of the hotel meetings,” Xavi said in Guillem Balague’s biography ‘Pep Guardiola: Another Way Of Winning’. “I wasn’t used to being at home for a couple of hours before the match and at first it was very strange for me.“I felt like I wasn’t well prepared. It felt like I was too switched off. I even thought that fate would punish me with a bad game for not giving 100 per cent of my time to it beforehand. But I soon realised that, with these new rules, I would also benefit. Thinking too much can put too much pressure on you; this turns into nerves and I have learnt to analyse what is really important. Minimising the meetings reduces our stress levels all year round.”"
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That does seem to be the thrust of the idea — relaxation and the soothing of anxiety before one conducts oneself at the Etihad the following day.
As for enforcement of such a mandate, The Telegraph quotes Guardiola claiming that he’s “not a policeman,” though he and or his associates at Barcelona have called players the night prior to home matches to ensure his footballers are where they’re supposed to be. Those who flouted the rules were hit with a fine.
This change isn’t the first one Guardiola has implemented at City. He’s already banned pizza and other suspect foods, while prohibiting players who are overweight from training until they lose the pounds. Samir Nasri has apparently failed to make the cut in this regard.
The Telegraph‘s James Ducker tabulated the adjustments Guardiola has already made in his inaugural season at the wheel, as well as other tweaks possibly still to come. Discounting the dietary restrictions, players are expected to eat lunch together and sit with different members of the squad to preempt the formulation of cliques. Also listed as a potential change is a “signing in policy” at training that is backed with a threat of fines for being tardy. The fines increase the more serious the infraction, with the range between £421 to £5047.