Man City reach agreement to avoid UEFA punishment after Pep Guardiola call

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Manchester City have struck a unique deal with UEFA, allowing them to skip training the day before their Champions League clash against Borussia Dortmund . Pep Guardiola made the decision on Monday, believing his squad would benefit from a rest day on Tuesday ahead of their match on Wednesday , following a session after their Premier League game against Bournemouth .

This move disrupts UEFA's usual expectations for Champions League matches. As per the 'Media Matters' section of the regulations, clubs are required to open their pre-match training session to the media for at least 15 minutes.

This is part of the service provided to broadcasting rights-holders who pay UEFA for such access.

"Both clubs must make their training session on the day before the match open to the media for at least 15 minutes in accordance with the schedule agreed in advance with UEFA. The two training sessions must be arranged by the two clubs and UEFA together, so that the media can attend both," states Article 79.

The rules also state: "In principle, the visiting club holds its official training session in the stadium where the match will take place on the day before the match, unless otherwise agreed in advance with UEFA...If a club does not hold a full training session on the day before the match, alternative arrangements must be made in agreement with UEFA to provide the media with access to a minimum of 15 minutes of the team's preparation (e.g. stadium walk-around)."

In a bid to avoid training on Tuesday, manchester -city-fc> Manchester City have sent 15 minutes of footage from Monday's session to UEFA, which can be used by broadcasters. This 'alternative arrangement' has been accepted, allowing City players a day off and ensuring they dodge any UEFA sanctions.

Despite this, Guardiola and one player will still fulfil their media duties with a press conference on Tuesday. Guardiola is expected to explain his reasons for skipping training during the press conference, as well as provide updates from Sunday's game.

On Monday, the squad had a training and recovery session at the City Football Academy. As per usual, those who didn't start the match at the weekend underwent a more intense workout.

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The City are aiming for two victories in their two home European matches this month, either side of the November international break, to secure a top-eight spot that would guarantee them direct qualification for the last-16. They're set to face Dortmund on Wednesday and then Leverkusen later in the month.

"We want this season to qualify in the top eight. We know how important it is to not have those two extra games," said captain Bernardo Silva after the win in Villarreal last month.

"But yeah, we're happy with our momentum right now, with the way the team is playing."

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