Pep Guardiola says non-participating clubs are "jealous" of FIFA Club World Cup

Pep Guardiola has suggested that there is too much pessimism surrounding the Club World Cup. (Image credits - FMT, License Details)

The FIFA Club World Cup is now approaching its final two rounds, with many shocking results already witnessed in the competition so far.

Amongst all of these, Manchester City's loss to Al-Hilal in the RO16 was an absolutely astonishing result, which stunned Pep Guardiola along with many spectators all over the world. This result came on the back of Fluminense's stunning victory over Champions League runners-up Inter Milan, which upheld the competition's purpose of bringing the world's best to battle it out.

While many opinions were given about the "massive" difference in strength and quality between the participating European clubs and the rest, these results showed that in football, there is no one superior; only the ones who come out on top are.

Even before these surprising results, Pep Guardiola had come out in the competition's defence, stating that the non-participating clubs are "jealous" of the newly formatted Club World Cup, suggesting that because of this, there is too much negativity surrounding the tournament.

What did Pep Guardiola say?

In a recent post-match interview, when asked about the problems of the CWC, the Spaniard stated, "After this (the Club World Cup), let's see what happens," said Guardiola. "Let's see what happens after the final. We can rest and take the time that the Premier League has allowed us to rest, and then we will see." (sic)

He further added, "Maybe in November, December or January, it will be a disaster; we are exhausted, and the World Cup has destroyed us. I don't know, but it's the first time in our lives that this has happened." (sic)

Here Pep reflected on his thoughts on the bad effects of the long and hectic schedule, where the players are not getting enough time to rest and recover.

However, he also later added, "As managers, we don't organise the competitions. Once we are here, we are proud. Many, many teams complain about these competitions because they are not here; otherwise, they might love being here. They would have their media and supporters here, and there would be income to be here, and they would be happy to be here."

Pep's statements indicate that while there are certain issues that come with the new Club World Cup, there seems to be no doubt that every club would like to participate in the competition due to its prestige and honour.

Pep continued by saying, "Of course, it's not an ideal situation for the manager. Would I love to have two months to prepare for next season? Yes. Would I love to be refreshed for next season? Yes. But it is what it is. And we deserve what we have done in the past to be here. Once we are here, let's do our best possible." (sic)