How on earth do Manchester City attack the next few weeks?

If there has been any shock or disappointment over their Champions League exit, then that should be out of the system now the last-16 first legs are over. Pep Guardiola gave his City players two days off at the start of the week before calling his squad back for four days on the training pitch - a luxury they have only had twice in 2025 and five times all season.

Guardiola has targeted Saturday's trip to Nottingham Forest as a critical one in their Champions League qualification hopes. Forest are third, a point ahead of City and also into the FA Cup quarter finals. They have lost just three of the 15 games since going down 3-0 at City in December and haven't lost at home since November.

READ MORE: Man City get unexpected help for next season - but Premier League won't like it

READ MORE: Liverpool receive points deduction threat as Man United and Man City watch on

After that is the visit of a Brighton side who beat City in the reverse fixture and are just four points behind them in eighth. Two wins would not only strengthen top four chances but weaken two rivals. City also have fixtures against seventh, ninth and tenth as they look to create some distance between the clubs behind them.

It's fair to say that the Forest game is City's most difficult remaining in the fixture list - away from home against a team above them. Any other tricky games (Brighton, Bournemouth, Aston Villa) are all at home.

So with only two more midweek fixtures (plus maybe one more), all of which would be at home, Guardiola can use the extra time to go as strong as he wants for the last few weeks of the season. Essentially, this period will double as City's pre-season for 2025/26.

The Club World Cup will remove any recognised pre-season for the summer so City will have to return in August from a standing start. Any formation work, new tactics or personal training will probably have to take place before the end of the season rather than after it.

And as Guardiola plans his 2025/26 side, there are probably only three players who can be confident of starting the big games next term. Erling Haaland is a future captain and signed up for nine more years, Rodri has further cemented his importance with his absence this term, and Player of the Season contender Josko Gvardiol has been undroppable at left-back.

Aside from that, not even Ederson or Ruben Dias can consider themselves truly safe.

Ederson's future is not guaranteed and Stefan Ortega is an able deputy. In defence, Dias is the most reliable of an unreliable group of players when it comes to fitness, but he has still missed games this season. The four centre-backs plus Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis will all be fighting for two or three spots next to Gvardiol.

Right-back is a position which needs strengthening as neither Rico Lewis nor Matheus Nunes have done enough to lock down that spot in Kyle Walker's absence.

Nico Gonzalez can be confident of a prominent role next season although Rodri's return will complicate that, especially alongside the likes of Bernardo Silva, Mateo Kovacic and Phil Foden. All good players - and an in-form Foden walks into the City team - but all rotatable.

The futures of Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan are uncertain as the veteran pair approach crunch talks over their individual contracts.

Guardiola called Jeremy Doku and Savinho the future of the City attack last week, before dropping both against Plymouth for Jack Grealish and James McAtee. Add Omar Marmoush and Oscar Bobb, plus potentially Nico O'Reilly, and the attacking midfield options become complicated.

So unless you are Rodri, Haaland or Gvardiol, there is plenty to play for ahead of the Club World Cup and next season.