The Liverpool boss and his first team will not participate in their replay against Shrewsbury, while Man City booked their place at the Carabao Cup final.
City will face Aston Villa in Wembley on March 1, following a 3-2 aggregate win over Manchester United at the semi-final, despite losing 1-0 at home in Wednesday’s second leg.
Guardiola made a point of the fact he’s continued to mention strong teams at the Carabao Cup, despite many fans seeing it as the most crucial trophy on offer.
Klopp has come in for criticism from some quarters in recent times after pledging to play with his reservations in Liverpool’s FA Cup fourth-round replay against Shrewsbury, that Klopp will likewise not be attending.
“People say we’re complacent about what we have won,” Guardiola told reporters.
“You do not try to diss the humble competition of the season if you’re unable to do it [win the Premier League] three times in a row with big games in the Premier League and Champions League and everybody else there.
“When you win a great deal, they state this competition doesn’t matter, but with me this doesn’t occur. It does not matter, we attempt to do it.
“Being at Wembley with a historical team like Villa, we’re delighted to be there.”
Liverpool threw away a 2-0 lead off at Shrewsbury on Sunday, adding still another fixture into a packed calendar for Klopp’s side this year.
The German was annoyed the playoff was organised for February 4 during the Premier League’s designated winter and pledged that neither he nor his first team would disrupt a much-needed break.
That hasn’t been a popular option in certain quarters. Accrington Stanley chairman Andy Holt launched in an expletive-filled rant on Twitter, branding Klopp a”disgrace”.
“You are tarnishing your reputation,” he wrote. You are killing the FA Cup. You are killing us.”
Liverpool crashed from the Carabao Cup in odd fashion earlier in the season, as their tie with Aston Villa clashed with their Club World Cup campaign.
A group of reserves and kids was thrashed 5-0 in Villa Park, however, the defeat doesn’t seem to have weighed to greatly on the Reds.
They stretched their lead at the peak of the Premier League table into a barely believable 19 points on Wednesday with a 2-0 win over West Ham, finishing the set of beating all 19 of the other teams in the league this year.
