Maresca: Man United Needs to Adjust to Fixture Schedule

Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has told Manchester United they need to "adapt" to the fixture schedule before Sunday’s Premier League derby.

City goes into the derby with two extra days of rest. They beat Porto 2-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday. United, on the other hand, won 4-0 against Sabah on Thursday.

This difference gives Michael Carrick’s side less time to recover and prepare for the Manchester derby. But Maresca said these situations are part of football.

“To be honest, the club mentioned to me that it happened exactly the same last year when the club played Napoli and then, after two days, played Arsenal,” Maresca told BBC Sport on Friday.

“Sometimes it happens in football. I don’t have any doubt that Man United are going to be ready for that. It just matters to adapt.”

Maresca also pointed to a similar situation City faced last September before their match against Arsenal. Arsenal played Athletic Club in the early kick-off on Tuesday. Then City played Napoli in the 20:00 BST game on Thursday.

Former City manager Pep Guardiola joked at that time that he would take his players "hiking in the mountains" to prepare for the tough schedule.

With the expanded Champions League bringing more matches before January ends, and English clubs also playing in the Carabao Cup, Maresca recognized the challenges of a busy calendar.

“I think that happens and you need to adapt,” he said when asked if the scheduling would eventually even out.

“It happened last year with us, this season with them, next season it will happen with a different team.”

When asked how United manager Michael Carrick might feel about this situation, Maresca said: “That’s a question for Michael. The only thing I can say is it happened, and you need to adapt.”

The Manchester derby will be Maresca’s first in charge of City. The Italian has started his time at the club impressively.

City has won all three of their Premier League matches this season. Meanwhile, United has earned four points from their first three games.

Maresca said he understands the importance of the derby. But he insisted that City’s main focus will be on keeping their identity.

“It is very important for different reasons,” he said. “We know how important a derby is, especially here. It is a special game.

“The most important thing we can do is try to be ourselves, and then we see the final result.”