Guardiola: April will be crucial for our season | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola insists April will be a season-defining month as we continue to hunt three trophies in 2022/23.

City face Bayern Munich twice in the Champions League quarter-finals, the first leg at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday 11 April and the return game at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday 19 April.

In the Premier League, we have an incredibly busy schedule, including taking on Liverpool on Saturday 1 April and current table-toppers Arsenal on Wednesday 26 April, both on home soil.

In the FA Cup, a competition Guardiola is looking to win for a second time, City face Sheffield United at Wembley in the semi-finals, with the tie due across the weekend of 22-23 April.

Guardiola is well aware of the sternness of these upcoming tests and how they will shape the destiny of this current campaign.

On the importance of April, he said: “Of course, it is going to decide because we make an incredible February and an incredible March and when you pass April incredible successful May will be so important.

“As much as you go through with the competitions, as much closer to the end of the season you are living.

“But again, it’s the 51 times here together we score more than five goals and that is the reason why we invite the people to come and it’s a lot of times and still again and again and again being in April, you know March, April, being there and alive in the competitions we have done really well. That is no secret.”

April is looking very busy with the Champions League quarter-final second leg, the FA Cup semi-final and the Premier League summit battle with Arsenal set to be played in the space of a week.

Guardiola is not thinking about this jam-packed schedule at present.

He’s more concerned about his players coming back fit from the upcoming international break and then preparing for the top-flight tussle with the Reds when the domestic campaign resumes.

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On the break, he added: “It is what it is. For me, it’s perfect as I will go to Barcelona and Abu Dhabi so it’s perfect.

“I pray that no-one comes back with an injury. I said to the players – come back fit. You know exactly what you need.

“You work here every day with our incredible staff and backroom staff. What you need to be fit, you need to do it in the national team and hopefully the managers take care of the players as much as possible.

“The week now is rest, go with the national team, come back and three days to prepare for Liverpool and we will see what happens next.”