Not at all. It wasn't an issue then. But now a winter break is needed? It's clear that English players and the league style we have isn't what's needed at the moment to progress in EL/CL or at summer tournaments. A winter break wouldn't improve players technical ability or improve squad quality.
I meant during the period of the CL break. Would be difficult to change the traditional fixture list though. As teams progress through the FA cup they have PL fixtures moved to midweek games later on anyway, getting rid of replays would be a start.
Ahhh, my mistake. getting rid of replays would help PL team who are progressing through the later rounds of the EL/CL, but then becomes unfair on the smaller sides who could be banking on a lucrative televised replay against a United or spurs for example....kick out the LC replays, but not FA cup.
which is why you have no clue english players are largely irrelevant at the top of the league. English players are only relevant for england in the summer. It is irrelevant in the 60, 70 and 80s simply because nobody was as professional in those days and half the leagues played against were semi pro or dominated in the east by one state sponsored team. the facts remain that a) spanish, german and italian teams don't have 5/6 rivals domestically to compete with so can prioritise these european compa b) said leagues organise their cups such that they don't interfere with europe c) said leagues only have one cup d) said leagues give players 2 weeks off i nthe middle of the season to recuperate. e) teams in CL can prioritise the cup. in spain its the title or bust but theres only 3 sides in for it. in germany bayern have it won by feb usually, psg had it won in august! they can all prep for the last 16. example: italy. lower seria a clubs come in in 3rd round played in august. they play off to get 8 teams total from the lower serie a teams and other divisions combined. it is only the 5th round where italians top teams come in.. the round fo 16. R16 and QF are played prior to the cl starting the Sf is played march and april. so in other words a top side needs to play a TOTAL of 5 games in the italian cup MAX the whole point is they get a little period to rest, heal up a few injuries or whatever, see a bit of sun etc etc and some april and may they are a little fresher... not much but a little To say theres no talent i nthe league or whetever is just not the case. there's plenty of talent.
There's no need for a winter break, albeit I think they should remove 1 of the league fixtures over the holiday period. Changing the calendar to assist the CL clubs is a knackers idea.
I know the point is probably gone but in regards to winter break. We never complained some years back when English teams consistently in Champions League Finals/Semi-final stages and we didn't have a winter break. We use this point when it suits us but when English teams are doing well it's never mentioned.
The one kicking off at 5:30pm on New Year's Eve with zero public transport available would be a good start
Why do the FA have to bend to the will of the top English clubs? The amount of money and squad quality of the top sides should be sufficient to not worry about a break.....let the top clubs have a top squad and not worry about a break
Claiming Christmas football is a tradition is correct but also a red herring. The game has evolved so much and footballers these days are finely tuned athletes not the lads who had a night out, drank and smoked right before a game. I don't think I'd like a month long winter break but new rules could be introduced that a certain number of U21's had to play in December or just for that month 5 subs could be allowed. That way the main players get a rest but the game isn't shut down for the fans.
Fine tuned athletes should be able to play/recover over the busy holiday period. Ice baths, pressure chambers and other method she of recovery have moved on from the days of hot baths and a massage
Think we going at this from the wrong angle. Footballers are supposed to be entertainers, the games are for us to enjoy and the Christmas period is exciting and breaks just ruin the momentum of the product. So i believe that all the other leagues in europe and world should get rid of their winter break to level up the playing field.
Don't think the top clubs in each league would agree though sadly as they get the money in their leagues to stay competitive and remain at the top. Here it's dished around fairly from TV money, don't Barca and real do their own deals? Only way you get somewhere in Spain apart from those 2 is to buy your success like Chelsea and city have here before tv money leveled the field.
Scotland introduced a winter break years ago then stopped it in 2003 but are reintroducing it this year. They have a legitimate reason along with it being a players rest - the bad weather and frozen pitches that take out a large part of the December fixtures anyway. Contrary to what others have said I think no break only serves the big teams and gives them an advantage because their squad sizes can cope. The smaller teams can't. The Christmas period is a defining time in the season and if the smaller teams start to struggle then, they find it hard to recover. You can always see the league split a bit after those 'festive period' games. They've yet to come up with a device to sort out the mental strain of a long season with no break though
Tbh i figured as much but it seems such a silly idea to mess with so thought would go with silly suggetion No such thing as too many games. As many keep pointing out the players are finely tuned etc game is quicker etc. However those points were still valid to the players who played 46 games a season and played four competions. If anything they had it harder as pitches were generally awful and there wasnt as much emphasis on their fitness. However they were still the athletes of their generation. Dont mess i say. Teams know what the deal is, build your squad accordingly.
You only have to look at the lists of injuries players get these days to see the game's taken on a completely different aspect from the days of heavy pitches, heavy boots, heavy footballs, heavy fixture list. When I started watching the game there was no such thing as substitutes, imagine that now. It's quite literally a different ball game.
