Top Premier League clubs are unlikely to receive their way and see an expansion in the number of substitutes “for the foreseeable future” despite a string of muscular injuries early in the season.
Following their 1-1 draw at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp and his Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola both called for consideration of proposals that would allow them to use five substitutes in a game moderately than the standard three. They’ve also received the backing of the Professional Footballers Organization, the union for players across the country, and Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, among others.
Klopp missing Trent Alexander-Arnold to a calf injury in the game, which began at a frenetic pace before both sides ran out of energy in the second one half. Liverpool have also missing Fabinho to a thigh injury. All told, the seven clubs that are playing in European competition are currently without a minimum of 12 players because of muscle issues.
Premier League clubs were briefly allowed to name expanded substitute benches of nine with five coming onto the pitch all through the competition’s summer run of fixtures, dubbed Project Restart, that allowed them to total the 2019/20 season. On the other hand two separate votes on continuing the approach into the 2020/21 crusade saw the proposal rejected with the bulk of teams fearful of the virtue it would give to richer clubs with stronger benches.
It would require 14 clubs to vote in favor for a change to be made and the initial signs are the ‘Big Six’ will not get their way with Sheffield United publicly insistent that they see no reason to desert the three substitutes mannequin. Meantime Richard Masters, CEO of the Premier League, told the United Kingdom Government’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport choose committee that there was once frustration at sure clubs over the failure to change the rules.
“We went to five substitutes all through Project Restart because there had been a long lay off and we were playing 92 games in short order. There was once clearly a case to be made for a continuation on that. If truth be told most European leagues have done that. There is an issue to be made that five substitutes changes the balance of a football match as opposed to the very real issues of player welfare. It is a finely balanced argument.
“We’ve had two votes on it at club level and both have been fairly conclusively in favor of three subs… That has created some frustration in the system alongside discussions approximately the fixture scheduling, which is a pandemic-related issue. Obviously clubs had a very short time, some much shorter than others, to prepare for this season and we’re going into a quite truncated period.
“You’ll see why it’s an issue of debate especially if you’re – in Jurgen and Pep’s case – competing in Europe.”
Asked by Steve Brine, MP for Winchester, if this season was once indeed busier than those that came before it, Masters added: “It is busier [than any other season] and it is also coupled with the truth that we ended the season at the start of July and not the end of May. Normal rest periods haven’t been taken into account.
“There is a real issue there. It has been discussed at length. I don’t foresee it changing for the foreseeable future alternatively.
“Our job is to verify we create a calendar which fits with our broadcast commitments, we’ve made very lucid broadcast commitments, and take a look at to do our best – as we all the time do – to work with clubs to create a fixture calendar that has player welfare at its core.
“We will be able to’t all the time do everything that everybody wants us to do but where there’s flexibility we try to help.”
That is an assessment that sure managers won’t accept as true with. Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was once livid after his side’s 3-1 win over Everton on Saturday, insisting that those in charge of the fixture list had set his team up to fail by handing them the day’s early kick-off when they been in Turkey on Wednesday, losing 2-1 to Istanbul Basaksehir.