Pep Guardiola bans overweight players from Man City training

New Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has banned junk food and exiled overweight players from first-team training.

Defender Gael Clichy says the Spaniard has told his players to avoid pizza, some juice and certain “heavy food”.

City open their Premier League campaign at home to Sunderland on 13 August.

“For my part, it’s the first time any manager has really done it. And we have a few players who are not training with the team yet,” Frenchman Clichy said.

“If your weight is too high, you’re not training with the team. You have to know that if your weight is 60 kilos and you are on 70 kilos, then you cannot play football.

“Some people think that’s normal but, in truth, it’s not always like this. I know because I’ve been playing football for a long time. It’s really refreshing and very exciting.”

City face Borussia Dortmund in the International Champions Cup in Shenzhen, China, on Thursday.

Their pre-season friendly against Manchester United in the Bird’s Nest stadium, Beijing, was called off on Monday after the pitch was left unplayable by heavy rain.

Source: BBC