2025 Club World Cup: Pep Guardiola warns tournament could ‘destroy’ his team’s Premier League campaign

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted he does not know if Manchester City’s next Premier League challenge will be “destroyed” by their Club World Cup campaign or not.

Guardiola’s comments come after England manager Thomas Tuchel suggested that City and Chelsea’s participation in the tournament could give teams like Liverpool and Arsenal an advantage in the title race.

The Citizens had a short break after wrapping up the previous Premier League season on May 25, before embarking on their Club World Cup campaign on June 18 in Philadelphia. Guardiola admitted that he doesn’t know how much the tournament will take out of his squad, but warned that it could have a significant impact.

“I may say, so listen, we are a disaster. We are exhausted. The World Cup destroyed us.

“I don’t know, but it’s the first time in our life that that’s happened. So we’ll see.”

Pep Guardiola is worried the Club World Cup may have taken a toll on his players ahead of the new Premier League season.#3Sports pic.twitter.com/xm9DapHndZ

— #3Sports (@3SportsGh) June 30, 2025

Guardiola also referenced comments made by former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who had criticized the expanded 32-team Club World Cup event as “football’s worst idea.” Guardiola noted that he and Klopp had previously clashed over scheduling and rest periods for players.

“Jurgen, we fought together many, many times… when we went to UEFA meetings especially, or when we discussed the Premier League calendar, about how to add more quality, giving the managers and players more rest”

City will face Al Hilal in the round of 16 on Tuesday and could potentially reach the final on July 13, leaving them a month to prepare for the new Premier League season starting on August 16.

City will kick off their 2025/26 Premier League campaign with a challenging away match against Wolves at Molineux, aiming to reclaim the title they lost to Liverpool last term.