Pep Guardiola Says Manchester City Won't 'Waste Energy' on Carabao Cup

Expect to see changed Manchester City sides in the League Cup moving forward with fixture congestion a hot topic.

Pep Guardiola won't waste his squad's energy in the Carabao Cup moving forward. / IMAGO/Andrew Yates/Sportimage

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said after his side's 2–1 victory over Watford in the Carabao Cup that he'll field lineups with less minutes moving forward in the competition.

"I would say the next round we're going to play the players who, I announce it now, who played less minutes, or the second team. We are not going to waste energy for this competition, for sure," Guardiola said in a press conference.

Guardiola started a strong side against Watford including Kyle Walker, John Stones, Jack Grealish, Phil Foden and Jérémy Doku. All players listed either started or appeared in City's 2–2 draw against Arsenal on Sunday. Joško Gvardiol and Savinho, starters against Arsenal, also came off the bench Tuesday.

Manchester City lost Rodri for the season after picking up an ACL injury against Arsenal. Kevin De Bruyne couldn't continue last week against Inter in the Champions League and did not appear in City's last two games.

Rodri revealed players were close to a strike over the amount of matches played in a season.

Guardiola's City won four straight EFL Cups from 2017–21. The most notable victories in the competition came in City's centurion Premier League season and the domestic treble campaign.

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