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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola confessed his squad were "incredibly tired" following their 1-1 stalemate with Arsenal in the Premier League.
Guardiola also voiced similar worries to those previously expressed by ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, who had slammed the Club World Cup tournament during the summer months. Sunday witnessed City compelled to accept a single point after Gabriel Martinelli's late strike neutralised Erling Haaland's opener against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
The outcome leaves City trailing table-toppers Liverpool by eight points in the Premier League, with the defending champions preserving their perfect record this term. Guardiola highlighted exhaustion as a factor behind City's display against Arsenal, following a hectic summer which saw them participate in the FIFA Club World Cup, reports the Mirror.
City were knocked out in the round of 16 at the beginning of July, merely days before Premier League sides resumed pre-season preparations. Having witnessed City held to a stalemate with Arsenal, Guardiola revealed why the gruelling fixture list impacted his team's performance standards.
"We cannot make an excuse without what happened this week, a tough game against [Manchester] United, Champions League Thursday [vs Napoli] and today against a team like this, so powerful," said Guardiola in an interview with Sky Sports.
"Hats off to the team, their resilience, it's so difficult when you're not affecting the high pressure, the build-up, it's already so tough to do it."
City have managed to collect just eight points from their five Premier League fixtures this campaign. Guardiola was subsequently questioned about whether the packed fixture list had contributed to City's dip in form this term.
"They [Arsenal] were better and we were incredibly tired," said Guardiola. "People don't realise, the game against Napoli was so emotional after that a recovery day then it's four or five hours to arrive in London, it's more fatigue and everything.
"A team like Arsenal, who fought in the last two Premier Leagues, Champions League semi-final, not just Man City invest money they did it as well but we were there.
"We have to be strong and you have to have mentality, we have that. Honestly, of course it will affect you, the mindset will have to be strong but we have fatigue with the same players and we have players injured.
"John [Stones] came back injured from the international team, [Rayan] Cherki, Rayan [Ait-Nouri], Nathan [Ake] has been out for a long time. So many things have happened but if you want to bring the fact that I don't want to complain about the schedule, that's okay I'm complaining for the schedule. Are you satisfied?".
Guardiola's observations echo earlier comments made by Klopp during the summer months, when the former Liverpool manager took aim at the Club World Cup.
Klopp had expressed concerns regarding the congested calendar and its potential consequences for player wellbeing. "In the end, it's all about the game and not the surrounding aspects - and that's why the Club World Cup is the worst idea ever implemented in football in this regard," Klopp told Welt earlier in the summer.
"People who have never had anything to do with day-to-day business or who no longer have anything to do with it come up with something. Last year we had the Copa America and European Championship, this year the Club World Cup and next year the World Cup.
"This means no real recovery for the players who are there, neither physically nor mentally. An NBA player, who also earns a big salary, has a four-month break every year. This is what (Liverpool defender) Virgil van Dijk got in his entire career."
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