The weekly structure changes according to the gap between matches. In a typical Sunday-to-Sunday cycle, players have a rest day after the game, two training days, another day off and then two sessions focused on the next fixture.
Deakin’s approach is to increase the challenge early in the week before gradually reducing the load:
The balance is delicate. City want the squad ready to face elite opponents potentially three times in a week, without allowing accumulated fatigue to undermine performance.
For Deakin, the gym must prepare players for the realities of football rather than simply add more work. Calves and hamstrings receive particular attention because players must sustain repeated running, explosive sprints and sharp changes of direction.
Machines targeting the soleus and gastrocnemius sit alongside squats and eccentric hamstring exercises. That eccentric focus is especially important for braking and absorbing force, although the gym programme is designed to complement the demands already created on the pitch.
City also use blood-flow restriction garments from Hytro as part of their recovery and rehabilitation work. Their practical value is central to the plan: players can wear them during active recovery on a bike, while resting, on team-bus journeys, alongside ice baths or during a return-to-training programme.
The next test will come when the fixture list tightens. City’s ability to preserve intensity against Chelsea, Arsenal and the rest of the title contenders may depend as much on this carefully managed preparation as on what happens with the ball.