Manchester City to request major Carabao Cup rule change ahead of Arsenal final says Pep Guardiola | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola has said he will instruct Manchester City to request a major change to the Carabao Cup’s rules ahead of their Final clash with Arsenal in March.

City secured their place at Wembley with an authoritative showing against Newcastle, completing a comfortable two-legged semi-final success that highlighted the depth and adaptability within Pep Guardiola’s squad.

Despite rotating key personnel on Wednesday night, Manchester City controlled the tie early in the second leg, striking quickly and effectively to extinguish any hopes of a Newcastle comeback.

The performance also highlighted Guardiola’s careful management of minutes, his reliance on squad depth during decisive periods of the season, and a growing emphasis on having as many players available as possible for major fixtures.

With Arsenal now awaiting in the final, preparation and player availability have become central talking points, with that context following closely on from Guardiola’s frustration with Carabao Cup logistics and City’s repeated requirement to travel south for finals at Wembley.

Now, attention has shifted from geography to governance, with the Manchester City manager questioning competition regulations that could prevent a fully registered first-team player from featuring in a showpiece domestic cup final.

Speaking to Sky Sports after Wednesday night’s semi-final second-leg win over Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium, Pep Guardiola admitted, “Hopefully we can convince the Carabao Cup that Marc [Guehi] can play the Final because it’s difficult to understand.”

He continued by explaining, “The Club made a big investment to play one player, take one player, he belongs to us and… I don’t understand why he cannot play the Final, honestly!

“We’ll make a letter, and hopefully they can understand that once you buy a player for a lot of money, and he’s not able to play for a rule that I don’t understand, hopefully they can change it and he can play.”

Marc Guehi was ineligible for the 3-1 win over Newcastle on Wednesday night as he did not join Manchester City prior to the first-leg in the North-East last month, while recent loan recall Sverre Nypan – who also missed that game – was eligible as he did not feature for Middlesbrough in this season’s tournament.

Further quizzed on the matter during his post-match press conference, Guardiola told reporters, “Apparently Marc couldn’t play the second-leg [against Newcastle] because he didn’t play the first.

“And Antoine [Semenyo] arrived before the first could play, but now it’s the Final! Why should he not play?! Why not?! He’s a Man City player, we pay his salary, we hired him, he’s our player – why should he not play?!”

The Catalan continued, “We want to [ask]. I said to the club, they have to ask, yeah definitely! I don’t understand the reason why he cannot play in the Final of the Carabao Cup, in March, when he has been here for a long time!

“The rules to buy a player depends on me, depends on FIFA, UEFA or the Premier League say, ‘OK the transfer window is open, you want to buy a player’, and they have to play, no?

“The competition’s logic, I don’t understand why he could not play today, but in the Final in two months time, of course we are going to try to ask to play because it’s pure logic.”

Pep Guardiola certainly is not getting his hopes up however, and when asked what he believes the response will be from the English Football League, he said, “Er, ‘no’. To change the rules, no way. But we will try!”

Whether Manchester City’s request gains traction remains to be seen, with competition regulations rarely altered mid-season.

With the Arsenal final looming, Manchester City’s focus will now be twofold in maintaining fitness levels and clarity over selection. Should the request be rejected, Guardiola will hope to have other options to rely upon, and more specifically Ruben Dias – who has recently returned from a hamstring injury.