Guardiola has been rallying against the increasing demands on players and the fixture congestion they have had to face even in the most normal seasons, different from this year’s special circumstances.

 

UEFA are preparing to ratify a new Champions League format that will add four more games for each participating team and it is likely to congest the fixture list further and put further pressure on domestic leagues.

 

 

The Manchester City manager stressed that domestic leagues need to take precedence and the authorities should be more careful about the physical demands on the players.

 

De Laurentiis insisted that he is happy to hear what Guardiola said and stressed that he has been rattling on about it for years to no avail.

 

 

The Napoli owner took to Twitter and wrote: “I completely agree with what Pep Guardiola said. National leagues and their fans cannot be ignored.

 

“Pep Guardiola in fact said, ‘Too many games, UEFA and FIFA are killing the players’.

 

 

“This is what I have been saying since started taking an interest in football.

 

“Finally a responsible and intelligent person. Thanks, Guardiola.”

 

Despite the opposition amongst domestic leagues, UEFA are likely to ratify the new Champions League format in their executive committee meeting soon.