MANCHESTER CITY are battling a major Covid outbreak as the Premier League warned all 20 clubs they MUST play their FA Cup ties this weekend.
Boss Pep Guardiola, 50, and seven players are among 21 people in City’s first-team bubble isolating and will miss tonight’s third-round trip to Swindon after testing positive.
League chiefs wrote to clubs in a bid to keep the Covid-hit season on track.
In the letter, top-flight bosses were informed the usual Prem minimum requirement for 13 senior outfield players plus one goalkeeper, would be scrapped for the Cup’s third round.
Instead, clubs were informed they are required to name any registered players — which includes those in the youth ranks.
City are keen to play the tie but the club’s academy is also hit by Covid and the worry is more players could be ruled out before the 8pm kick-off at the County Ground.
First-team coach Rodolfo Borrell will lead the team and fears they will struggle to fill the bench.
Borrell, 50, said: “At this moment we have a squad and our willingness is to play the games and to play as many games as possible.
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“We have seven players unavailable, plus up to 14 staff. It’s quite a big outbreak.
“We are getting it day by day and we don’t know where it will end.
“I don’t know what will happen in the following days but right now it is an easy line-up to decide. We will play with what we have got.
“We have some first-team players and some others that will come from the second team.
“If unfortunately it happens that somehow we cannot fill the team, then we will have to think about postponement but in this moment in time we are ready to play.
“We are prepared to play and we are mentally ready for it.”
City have not asked to postpone the game and, as things stand, have no plans to do so.
But following the Prem’s letter, even if they do ask, their request could be knocked back.
Borrell added: “To fill the whole squad and to travel with at least five or six subs we have to bring in some players from the second team.
“But we also have an outbreak that involves some players from the academy, so the situation is not that easy.
“It is unpredictable because we also had cases of people who had the first variant and now they have the second variant. And it’s not only people that were without jabs, it was with people who have had the jabs, too.
“Nobody has guarantees about that. It’s unpredictable what is going to happen tomorrow and the following week even less.
“As a club, we are going back to the protocols we had at the start of the pandemic with more restrictions to try and minimise the risk at the training facility.
“There is a bit of anxiety because every day we have to test, almost everyone is suspecting who will be today, one, two, three less, no one left?”
Assistant boss Borrell will be in contact with his fellow Spaniard Pep during tonight’s televised tie.
He added: “Pep is fine, he has the virus, fortunately he hasn’t got a lot of symptoms.
“We are permanently in touch. Like we would be here but via Zoom call or call like we always do. This is the oldest national competition. It’s 150 years old or something like that.
“There is a lot of history and lesser or smaller teams can beat the big opponents because it’s a competition that creates a great atmosphere and enthusiasm.
“Everyone is trying to make their town or village or city proud.”
City won the FA Cup in the 2018-19 season and Borrell said: “It’s something special. It’s one of the titles we’re more proud to have achieved in the last six years.
“It’s important we do well and fight to get to the next stage.”
Burnley have also been hit with manager Sean Dyche and coach Steve Stone joining several players in having to isolate.
Assistant Ian Woan took training with just SIXTEEN PLAYERS ahead of their Cup clash with Huddersfield at Turf Moor tomorrow.
Woan said: “We have another round of testing so the team won’t be confirmed until Friday afternoon.
“But we’ll just do what we always do at Burnley — get it done. We won’t make excuses.”
Woan admitted life at the Clarets, who have seen three Prem games called off due to Covid, seems strangely quiet without 50-year-old Dyche, who tested positive on Tuesday.
Former Nottingham Forest star Woan, 54, said: “It’s quiet and it’s different. The gaffer is a huge presence — you usually hear him before you see him. I was a bit lonely in the office this morning.
“We’ve been together ten years here and at Watford and he’s never missed a game — he’ll be bouncing off the walls, I’d imagine.
“But I’ll have constant dialogue with him. I imagine there’ll be a phone call at half-time.”
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