Manuel Akanji BLASTS Club World Cup and admits Man City stars don’t want to be in it

The Manchester City defender has slammed the upcoming tournament in the USA, and says that he and his team-mates would rather not play in it after a long, gruelling season

Manchester City defender Manuel Akanji has laid into this summer’s Club World Cup and says that he and his team-mates would rather not take part in it.

The controversial 32-team tournament kicks off in the USA next weekend, with City facing matches Morocco’s Wydad Casablanca in Philadelphia on June 18, the UAE’s Al-Ain in Atlanta on June 23 and Serie A giants Juventus in Orlando on June 26 in the group stages.

City are being tipped by some to go all the way to the final on July 13, but after a gruelling season which saw them cede their grip on the Premier League title to Liverpool, crash out of the Champions League to Real Madrid and lose the FA Cup final to Crystal Palace, Swiss defender Akanji says he’d rather not bother with FIFA’s revamped tournament.

Speaking from Salt Lake City where Switzerland will face Mexico in a friendly on Saturday, Akanji said: “I have been a strong critic of this competition for some time now. We players would love to have some holidays, and some time for our bodies to rest.

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“My City teammates are not exactly overjoyed about the tournament either. But it’s now right in our faces, and there is nothing we can do about it.

“If we take part, then of course we want to win it. But if we reach the final, then the time period for us to recover ahead of the new season will become even shorter.”

Akanji will remain in the US after Saturday’s match before linking up with his City team-mates, and he admits his side let themselves down this season in comparison with their own high standards.

“Set against the expectations we have, this hasn’t been a good season. We finished third in the Premier League, three points behind Arsenal, and qualified for the Champions League,” continued Akanji.

“But it is still our worst campaign for some time. However, Pep Guardiola still said he was proud of us for never giving up. The season could have finished far worse than it did.”

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