Vincent Kompany comes up with radical solution to Liverpool problem that makes Jurgen Klopp ‘really angry’
Vincent Kompany has been discussing ways in which clubs can combat the current demands on their players
Burnley manager Vincent Kompany has proposed a radical change to the football calendar that could limit players to roughly 65 games a season for club and country – an idea that would likely get the backing of Jurgen Klopp.
According to Daily Mail, nearly 100 players are suffering from injury or are fitness doubts for the latest round of Premier League fixtures this weekend – with Liverpool sweating on the wellness of both Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez, who missed Wednesday’s League Cup victory over Leicester City.
Ahead of welcoming Liverpool to North London on Saturday, Tottenham, though, face the possibility of lining up without James Maddison, Giovani Lo Celso and Brennan Johnson, while Ivan Perisic, Rodrigo Bentancur and Ryan Sessegnon are all set for prolonged spells on the sidelines.
READ MORE: Trent Alexander-Arnold boost for Liverpool as Klopp confirms ‘little setback’
Speaking on Thursday ahead of his side’s trip to injury-stricken Newcastle United on Saturday, Kompany suggested that an appearance cap should be introduced by FIFA to protect the welfare of the game’s elite players, which he hopes would reduce the number of players suffering from injuries in the Premier League.
“For the players at the top, who have to play for their national teams and all of these other competitions, it should be capped appearances within a season,” said Kompany, whose Burnley side are set to be without five injured players this weekend.
“Put a number on it. It’s not for me to put a number on it, (but) 60 or 65 games. They (still) have to work hard, don’t get me wrong, but 60 games takes a little bit away. It would put the pressure more on coaches and national teams to come to a common-sense calendar.”
Since arriving at Anfield in October 2015, Klopp has regularly spoken out against the mental and physical demands that are put on players at the top level of both club and international football.
Last season, Liverpool suffered a string of injuries throughout the campaign as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ibrahima Konate, Naby Keita and Roberto Firmino were all sidelined for lengthy periods of time. Meanwhile, both Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz missed over five months of a disappointing campaign due to serious calf – as well as hamstring – and knee injuries respectively.
In Jota’s case, such a devastating setback could be traced back to Liverpool’s 2021/22 quadruple chase, which saw the Reds compete in 63 games in a 10-month period across the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup. As a result of their success, the Reds were only afforded 37 days between their Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid on May 28 and their return to the AXA Centre for pre-season training on July 4.
It meant after initially sustaining a hamstring injury while on international duty with Portugal in June, Jota suffered an immediate relapse during Liverpool’s first session of their pre-season tour of Singapore in early July.
Additionally, data revealed that Diaz played the second-most games across the 21/22 season after his outings with FC Porto, Liverpool and Colombia, while Mohamed Salah followed closely behind with 67 appearances for Liverpool and Egypt.
“There is a part of the league with an enormous amount of international players playing all over the world who get very little rest,” added Kompany. “If I look at the position we’re in, compared to the Championship last season, it is OK. We’re all right.
“I really believe in common sense. You’re not going to keep a player away from finals or important games, you’re not going to do that, but I think if you decide that physiologically that 65 games is beyond healthy then that should be the cap.
“So when he has to have time off, he has time off. Squads get bigger, players get more game time – everyone is happy. After that, you start juggling around like you do when you have an injured player. It’s no more difficult than that.”
Speaking on the eve of the 2022/23 Premier League season, Klopp echoed Kompany’s sentiment and insisted discussions surrounding a jam-packed schedule make him “really angry” – and even compared the issue to difficulties of climate change.
“If all the players then have a break it is not a problem, it is good, It is like a winter break which I had that in Germany as a player a lot, four weeks [off], stuff like that,” said the Liverpool boss. “The problem is the players who play the World Cup, that is just not okay but it is decided a long time ago.
“If you go to the final at a World Cup and win it or lose or a third-place match you are already quite busy and the then the rest starts a week later.
“When I start talking about it, I get really angry. My problem is that as much as everybody knows it’s not right, nobody talks often enough about it that it will be changed. Something has to change. You cannot just constantly watch top-class players and say, ‘Oh my God, how they are great.’
