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Guardiola upset about fixtures: “We’re going to kill the players”

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Man City's Leroy Sane whips a cross toward the back post and Raheem Sterling scores with a first-time shot to make it 1-0 against Watford.

Pep Guardiola’s focus wasn’t on his team’s fine performance on a miserable day against Watford, it was on the festive fixtures.

Manchester City returned to winning ways with a 3-1 defeat of the Hornets at the Etihad Stadium, but Guardiola says something has to be done about the congested fixtures.

[ RECAP: Man City 3-1 Watford ]

And for a man whose side has dropped points just twice this season, it’s not like he’s talking sour grapes from losing matches.

No sugarcoating, from the BBC:

“We’re going to kill the players. The federations don’t think about the players but they have to. They play 11 months in a row. They have to protect them and play with quality and not quality. We have to think about the artists. But I know it won’t happen.”

There won’t likely be a winter break in England, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see fixtures given a little more breathing room in the future. Two matches in three days is tough for the depth of so many sides.

Follow @NicholasMendola