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Pep Guardiola tore apart a new FIFA rule ahead of the Club World Cup next summer with one simple question: 'What makes a 'strongest' team'?

FIFA have implemented a series of rule changes ahead of the summer 2025 Club World Cup, of which Manchester City will be one of the star attractions. One such rule reportedly states that clubs must play their strongest teams in order to ensure the world's best players like Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe and Harry Kane are present at the tournament in the USA.

Guardiola is already unimpressed by the scheduling of the Club World Cup - adding an extra month on to a season that could potentially last a full year between the start of pre-season and its final game. He says he wants to manage City in the expanded tournament despite his contract expiring midway through, but took exception to the idea that anybody else would influence his selection plans for any game.

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"What is the strongest players? Which ones?" he asked. "If you tell me for them which players are stronger than the other ones? I don't understand. We go all the squad there, we don't go for one game. Right? I don't know the competition itself right now, but we don't go for 11 players. We go for the whole squad.

"I don't understand for the selection which player is stronger than the other one. I know. Strong means form? Maybe the strongest player for them is in a really bad condition for many reasons. Professional, physical, injuries, niggles. And I'm going to play other ones. I'm not going to say before the game which player to play. I will decide."

Guardiola also launched an impassioned defence of his club amid their 115 charges from the Premier League, and even told a journalist not to discuss City's long winning-run against Saturday's opponents Fulham, arguing that it tempts fate on the eve of a game.

And when discussing Kevin De Bruyne's fitness - he will miss the Fulham game - Guardiola also backed the Belgian's decision to withdraw from international duty over the next two fixture windows to preserve his fitness.

"How can he go when he didn’t play one game? I never understood that," said Guardiola. "He cannot play with us, cannot play with with Belgium. He didn't say to me he is going to retire from Belgium. He didn’t say that to me, but I don't know Kevin’s mind. For that game he is injured so is not available."