Kieran Maguire: Pep Guardiola livid after £5m Man City compensation payout – ‘it’s not enough’
Man City boss Pep Guardiola will not be happy with FIFA’s compensation scheme for players who have taken part in the World Cup.
That is the view of finance guru Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about how the risk of injury to City stars in Qatar has not been offset by the club’s financial gains.
FIFA have allotted £169million in total to pay clubs as part of its Benefits Programme for the mid-season tournament in the Middle East.
As relayed by the Daily Mail on Thursday (15 December), City will pocket the most of any Premier League club with £4.5million.
In total, 16 City players travelled to the World Cup, with Julian Alvarez the last man standing ahead of the Argentina versus France final on Sunday (18 December).
Maguire insists that Guardiola will consider £4.5m a measly sum when factoring in the strain his international players have been under in recent weeks.
“I’m sure Pep Guardiola would much rather have had his players available for another four weeks,” he told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.
“Instead, they have been at the World Cup throughout November and December, risking injury.
“There are a lot of fears that go with that and having to acclimatise when they get back to the UK.
“To lose players for a month, £4.5m isn’t huge, especially when you take a look at City’s wage bill, which is in the region of £350m.
“So, while they will be happy to have got some level of compensation, I would suggest that the cons outweigh the pros in this instance.“
In other news, expert suggests Man City have “big problem” with Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez.