Pep Guardiola is a manager so wedded to tactical preparation that he once pulled a muscle in his back after watching too many hours of footage of an opponent at Bayern Munich—ahead of a preseason match.

Yet, even the arch-strategist has been forced to adjust his approach amid the flurry of fixtures facing Manchester City ahead of this season’s run-in. “It is game, good recover, game, recover,” Guardiola fretted after complicating the calendar even further with a trip to the FA Cup final . “No more than that.”

City’s conclusion to a campaign which can still end with a domestic treble has taken another twist.…