Pep Guardiola took aim at the authorities after Erling Haaland scored on his return to action for Manchester City.
Kevin De Bruyne – who also found the net during the friendly victory over sister club Girona – and Ilkay Gundogan were the only players available to have featured at the World Cup.
City face Liverpool in the Carabao Cup fourth round on Thursday night and Guardiola bemoaned the short turnaround from the World Cup final to domestic football's return.
'We have four or five (senior) players,' Guardiola said.