‘In this situation, I think we are wasting our time trying to accomplish both things.’
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has claimed that the Premier League have made it ‘impossible’ to look after player welfare.
Arteta spoke after the recent meeting which saw top-flight managers discuss the fixture list and how they can help to protect players during the schedule.
But the Gunners boss believed that his words have fallen on deaf ears as the league’s hierarchy look to protect and prioritise the lucrative TV deals the Premier League has.
“We had a managers’ meeting where we tried to expose our feelings and the situation but the decisions are already made so now we’re not going to change that,” he told the Mirror.
“What I basically said was that we are discussing two things: the welfare of the players and the integrity of the competition.
“In this situation, I think we are wasting our time trying to accomplish both things.
“People then say we have to use common sense. Common sense in this situation, again, doesn’t work.
“So whether we change the rule or the testing, or whatever we change we cannot continue to try and achieve both of those things. It’s impossible.”
Arsenal were set to play Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday (28 December) afternoon, but the game was postponed after a number of positive Covid tests at Wolves meant the fixture could not be fulfilled.
🚨 Our Premier League fixture against Wolves has been postponed 👇#ARSWOL
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 26, 2021
The Gunners would have been playing 48 hours after their recent 5-0 win against Norwich City and are due to play again in three days time on New Year’s Day, but Arteta has echoed other managers’ frustrations about the uneven spread of games for teams.
He said: “We play in England, in England you have to play every two to three days in the Christmas period.
“Ideally, if everyone played within the same congestion of fixtures it would be much better but the circumstances now are not the normal ones.”
Related links:
- Premier League records highest ever number of positive Covid-19 cases
- Jurgen Klopp speaks out against congested Christmas fixture schedule, again
- Antonio Conte says Premier League meeting was a ‘waste of time’
