Guardiola Expects Man City to be Pitch Perfect Against Fulham

Football - Friendly - Manchester City v Girona - Etihad Campus, Manchester, Britain - December 17, 2022 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola reacts. (Reuters)
Football - Friendly - Manchester City v Girona - Etihad Campus, Manchester, Britain - December 17, 2022 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola reacts. (Reuters)
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Guardiola Expects Man City to be Pitch Perfect Against Fulham

Football - Friendly - Manchester City v Girona - Etihad Campus, Manchester, Britain - December 17, 2022 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola reacts. (Reuters)
Football - Friendly - Manchester City v Girona - Etihad Campus, Manchester, Britain - December 17, 2022 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola reacts. (Reuters)

Pep Guardiola insists Manchester City will be prepared for whatever conditions come their way at Fulham on Saturday after training on long grass.

City, bidding for an unprecedented fourth successive English title, are renowned for a possession-based passing game suited to the slick, watered surfaces they are guaranteed at their Etihad Stadium home.

City manager Guardiola said his side benefited from a slower pitch when they won at Nottingham Forest last month because it led to the home team missing several excellent chances, AFP reported.

But many observers interpreted the Spaniard's words as a slight dig at Forest for not preparing a pitch conducive to free-flowing football and Guardiola expects more of the same when City, bidding to move two points clear of leaders Arsenal, kick off at Craven Cottage on Saturday.

"Here we are, one week left to give all we have," said Guardiola, whose side will be guaranteed the title if they win all three of their remaining league games.

"I don't know about the grass, last season it was so, so high and dry. We have to adapt like with Nottingham, try to fight back with three points.

"Yesterday (Thursday) we trained part of the session with a dry, high (grass) to feel it, to adapt, and after we went to another normal pitch.

"It's a massive difference, massive. It's another game, another game. You have to adapt."

The Spaniard, comparing the situation to tennis, added: "I saw the forecast, it's a sunny day in London so you have to adapt in that situation, play in another rhythm and way. The passes must be stronger, faster, quicker. The control must attack the ball more.

"It's completely different, it's not basketball. It's like Wimbledon (grass) or Roland Garros (where the French Open is played on clay) -- ask a tennis player, the speed of the ball is different."

City head to London trailing Arsenal by a point but with a game in hand.

The Gunners then face Manchester United on Sunday before wrapping up their campaign against Everton.

City play their game in hand at Tottenham in midweek and then face West Ham in their final match of the league season.



‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
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‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)

The Paris Olympics look likely to get off to a soggy start.

Meteo-France, the French weather service, is predicting “flooding rains” Friday evening when the opening ceremony is set to unroll along the Seine River. But the show is set to go on as planned, starting at 1:30 p.m. EDT/7:30 p.m. CEST and should last more than three hours.

Already in the late afternoon, skies were gray with intermittent drizzle. There was a silver lining, though, with temperatures expected to stay relatively warm throughout the evening.

Instead of a traditional march into a stadium, about 6,800 athletes will parade on more than 90 boats on the Seine River for 6 kilometers (3.7 miles). Though 10,700 athletes are expected to compete at these Olympics, hundreds of soccer players are based outside Paris, surfers are in Tahiti and many have yet to arrive for their events in the second week, organizers said Thursday.

Hundreds of thousands of people, including 320,000 paying and invited ticket-holders, are expected to line the Seine’s banks as athletes are paraded along the river on boats.