The index of players on the Premier: “Nobody thinks about our health”

The clubs have voted against a stop in the English top flight despite the 90 positive in a week: under the holidays games in bursts

THE FOCUS

Punctual, like every winter, the controversy in the Premier League for the calendar of the Christmas period flooded with matches: an overload of commitments – to the benefit of the fans, and therefore also of the televisions – which this year however collides with the sharp rise of Covid infections. Opposing urgencies and priorities that are dividing the protagonists of the Premier, with players and coaches basically in agreement in asking for a long winter break and the clubs that do not want to jeopardize the hefty proceeds guaranteed by the holidays.

The alarm for the safety of the players this year was Jordan Henderson, captain of Liverpool, who in the next two weeks – including the match just drawn at Tottenham – will play five games. «Nobody cares about the health of the players. Only those who experience it firsthand know what it means. For us, football is everything, and we always want to give our best when we go out on the pitch, but unfortunately it is not possible in this period ”, the English midfielder’s complaint. Who underlined how not only suspensions and injuries, but this year also the positivity of Covid are wiping out the roses available to the coaches. Despite the six matches postponed in the last weekend, and the 90 positive players recorded in the last week (absolute record), on Monday the 20 companies of the English top division decided not to suspend the championship after Christmas, as vice versa requested by several parties. to overcome the emergency caused by the spread of the Omicron variant.

Several managers had spoken out in favor of the stop, regardless of the pandemic, because they were convinced that there is too much gambling in England. In recent days, Pep Guardiola and Antonio Conte had called for the introduction of a winter break. «We must listen to the players – Arsenal coach Arteta aligned -. Football has two protagonists: the players and the spectators. Without the former, nothing can be done, and we cannot compromise their health ”.

Even Steven Gerrard, today at the helm of Aston Villa, agreed with Henderson: «Because there is not only the risk of injuries, but also that of contagion. It is a very delicate situation, which changes from hour to hour ».

Yet despite the concerns and general uncertainty caused by the coronavirus, the majority of unvaccinated players are still in the Premier League. A situation in contrast with the rest of the country, where half of the adult population has already received the third dose.

Faced with the need to persuade players to get vaccinated, however, neither Conte nor Tuchel, on the Chelsea bench, wanted to get involved. From Liverpool, when asked about the same issue, Klopp, while expressing himself against the obligation to vaccinate, instead defined the vaccine as “a moral duty”. –