Manchester City’s Muslim squad members are currently observing the Islamic holy month of Ramadan through fasting, but Pep Guardiola is certain this will not affect their performance levels.
Ramadan is one of the most significant occasions in the Islamic calendar, which sees Muslims fast in order to seek spirtual purification through self-discipline, gratitude and humility.
Manchester City have a number of Muslim players who will be partaking in this ritual, including Omar Marmoush, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Rayan Cherki and Abdukodir Khusanov.
Their fast ends each day at the setting of the sun, which will be at 17:41 GMT, 11 minutes after Man City’s match against Leeds kicks off.
In order to accommodate this, Leeds are happy to halt play for a brief period in the first half so these players can fuel up with food and fluids before the game resumes.
Pep Guardiola backs his experienced Muslim players to perform
Playing at such a high level on a relatively empty stomach is no easy task, but Man City’s players are professional athletes who are used to fulfilling this obligation each year.
Pep Guardiola has made it clear that while he cannot control the Premier League’s kick off times, those in his squad who are fasting will be able to cope with Saturday’s demands.
Asked by BBC Sport if the club have to alter their schedules to help its Muslim players, manager Pep Guardiola said: “They follow this religious tradition. We have good nutritionists and they adapt to what the team needs.
“We cannot adapt the schedule for the Premier League [kick-off] times and I think they are used to it – they are not young and have been playing [for] many years during this period.
“For the players I think it is not new. Both Rayans, Omar and Khusa, it is not the first time for [observing] Ramadan and they know perfectly how to handle it.”
Man City offer their Muslim players support all year round
Manchester City have sought to accommodate their Muslim players in various ways over the past decade.
One way the club did this was by advertising the Asahi’s non-alcoholic Super Dry 0.0% product on their training shirts, to avoid any moral dilemmas.
City are also receive regular visits from the Muslim Chaplains in Sport organisation, who have been working with both the senior and youth teams at the club since 2016/17.
