Manchester City’s manager Enzo Maresca takes part in a press conference ahead of the friendly football match against Inter Milan for the Asahi Super Dry Trophy at Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong on July 31, 2026. (Photo by May JAMES / AFP)
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has told Manchester United they must “adapt” to the fixture schedule ahead of Sunday’s Premier League derby.
City go into the derby with two additional days of rest after beating Porto 2-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday, while United secured a 4-0 victory over Sabah on Thursday.
The difference means Michael Carrick’s side have less time to recover and prepare for the Manchester derby, but Maresca said such situations are part of football.
“To be honest, the club mentioned to me that it happened exactly the same last year when the club played Napoli and then, after two days, played Arsenal,” Maresca told BBC Sport on Friday.
