Manchester City's strong World Cup representation has become a double-edged sword for new manager Enzo Maresca, as six players will miss the entirety of pre-season after reaching the semi-finals in the United States.
Key Players Extend Their Season
City, who sent more players to the tournament than any other club, have three of the four remaining teams featuring at least one Etihad star. Julian Alvarez won the World Cup as a Blue in 2022 and Benjamin Mendy was part of the victorious France side in 2018, but the current scenario is among the worst for Maresca.
Whatever happens in the semi-finals, all four teams will be involved for another full week, ruling out those six City players from any pre-season involvement. FIFPro recommends four weeks of rest, the same amount of time between the World Cup final and the Community Shield against Arsenal in Cardiff.
Maresca's Pre-Season Plans Disrupted
Between those dates, Maresca will train with available players from Monday July 20 before heading to Asia for three friendlies in the first nine days of August. The absence of key figures is particularly problematic.
New £116m signing Elliot Anderson and left-back Nico O'Reilly were among those with the most Premier League minutes last season. O'Reilly played around 3,000 minutes more in all competitions, while Anderson saw his minutes increase by over 50 per cent.
Midfield Crisis Deepens
Anderson's absence is compounded by the expected post-World Cup surgery for Rodri, which will sideline the Spaniard further. Spain's progress to the last four means the operation is still pending. With Bernardo Silva departing in the summer, Maresca faces a headache over his No.6 plans.
Add in the need to rest O'Reilly, Marc Guehi, Rayan Cherki and James Trafford, and it may be a while before City are at full strength. According to Simon Bajkowski, chief Manchester City writer, "City's success in the World Cup will be celebrated internally, but it will hardly help the new coach to get off to a flying start."
