Due to their absence, teams grumble about these competitions. In response to Jurgen Klopp’s remarks regarding the Club World Cup, Pep Guardiola acknowledges that he “defends” the viewpoint of his former rival. The Club World Cup was recently dubbed “the worst idea ever implemented in football” by manager Jurgen Klopp.

 

Guardiola made the following statement prior to Manchester City’s matchup with Al-Hilal in the round of 16: “Jurgen and I fought together many, many times. I am aware of the origin of the concept, therefore… In England, we had a lot of fights. We tried [and produced] more quality when we attended the UEFA meetings, particularly when the Premier League was attempting to set the schedule. You have better quality if the management and players take a break. Therefore, I wasn’t overly surprised by Klopp’s remarks. I appreciate him and I understand him. After resigning from his position at the end of the 2023–24 season, Klopp is now Red Bull’s Head of Global Soccer, and Guardiola said that he would agree with the German if he were.

“I have an incredible relationship for many years with Jurgen from when we were rivals and now he has stepped back from that position and I understand his argument because I would defend it as well,” he explained. Nevertheless, he did imply that the criticism from people all around the world might stem from jealousy at not competing in the competition. He added: “But at the same time we are in a job, we follow FIFA, UEFA, the Premier League, Serie A, every competition.” Since we, as the management, will not be running the competitions, each person will have a specific job to play. We are pleased to be here. The reason so many teams grumble about these events is that they aren’t present, even though they would enjoy it.

 

Manchester City would play the Club World Cup just 33 days before the Premier League season began if they advanced to the final. Particularly as they strive to reclaim their crown, there would not be much time for relaxation.