Reports, most notably from the Spanish newspaper "AS," revealed on Monday that Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola made an unusual decision to give the team players a day off before the anticipated match against Real Madrid in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16.

Manchester City is preparing for a tough match at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow, Tuesday, which is the third encounter between the two teams this season in the European competition, following City's 3-0 defeat in the first leg, making the task extremely difficult.

The newspaper explained that Guardiola's decision comes about 24 hours before the official match time. The team was supposed to train after the press conference for the match, but the coach preferred to give the players a chance to relax and mentally prepare before the crucial encounter.

This was not the first time Guardiola gave Manchester City players a rest before a Champions League match. He did the same before the Manchester City vs. Borussia Dortmund group stage match last month, which ended with the English team winning 4-1.