Tuchel is clear: The fixture schedule is 'killing' players

9:30am on Sunday 1st November 2020
By Paul Macdonald

PSG boss Thomas Tuchel has slammed the 2020/21 fixture congestion which has left a heavy toll on his squad, believing that the intensity of the games are 'killing players'.

Neymar was the latest high-profile name to suffer a muscle injury this season, with muscle fatigue and matches missed by players within the top five leagues up nearly 50% year-on-year.

The Brazilian limped out of PSG's win at Basaksehir in the Champions League in midweek, and won't return until after the international break, adding to Tuchel's woes.

Speaking yesterday, Tuchel made his opinion on the number of games players are being asked to compete in absolutely clear.

He said: "We're going to kill the players. That's what I've always said. We are going to kill them because there is an important link between preparation, performance and rest

"In football it always falls on the greatest players because they will always play for their country. They play during the break, they travel and that's too much in my opinion. They don't have a recovery phase to allow them to come back and a preparation phase.

"This is not a secret, it happens in sport. Preparation influences injuries and performance. Without preparation, players are more fragile and difficult to manage. This is not an excuse, it is the truth. We are going to look for solutions and I hope we will find some."

Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola have also been extremely vocal in their criticism of how matches are being squeezed into an already-busy schedule in time for next year's European Championship.

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