Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has made a big admission ahead of the coming season, which could be his last in England.
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The Citizens' season starts on 10 August when the Premier League champions takes on FA Cup winners Manchester United in the FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium.
Ahead of the 2024/25 campaign, Guardiola believes it will take time for his charges to hit their stride amid their mixed pre-season preparations.
With a number of players having represented their countries at major tournaments over June and July, and Julian Alvarez currently at the Olympics with Argentina, Guardiola predicts finding form immediately is unlikely.
"We will arrive late but not (just) against Manchester United, against Chelsea and Ipswich too," he said, according to the Daily Mail.
"We will be late. It's about trying not to drop many points, try to compete well. We don't have players because they have to rest.
"If the big bosses and all the institutions like FIFA, UEFA and the Premier League don't think about the players, then the managers have to think about them, otherwise they will die. It's too much. That's why three weeks or one month is necessary, but the competition is there and you have to adapt."
Speaking further, the Spaniard noted that City are used to starting slowly.
"There's no solution, there will not be a solution because there is no intention to find a solution," he added.
"The clubs have to travel to show our brand around the world, to let other continents and places see our players, and we have to adapt.
"We would like to have had proper preparation but it's impossible because national teams deserve to play and every institution like FIFA and UEFA and local competitions want to defend their product and make games.
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"We have a good squad when everybody comes back. We have three, four, five interesting (young) players just in case we need them. We will do what we have done in the previous seasons when we have had success having the same calendar as this year."
