‘I think people are confusing Covid and the fixtures, because if Covid wasn’t around, people wouldn’t have complained as much.’
Thierry Henry has suggested that some people are ‘confusing’ Covid and the congested festive period as several managers complain about the current schedule.
A significant number of Premier League matches have been postponed in recent weeks with several clubs suffering from coronavirus outbreaks.
Manchester United’s matches against Brentford and Brighton were postponed due to the number of positive Covid-19 tests within the United camp, leading to a 16-day break before they drew 1-1 draw at Newcastle on Monday.
Several managers have expressed their frustration at the hectic schedule, including Jurgen Klopp, Brendan Rodgers and Thomas Tuchel.
However, Henry has proposed that people are ‘mixing up’ Covid and the festive period, adding that games around Christmas time are ‘part of the culture’.
Thierry Henry has fond memories of Premier League football during the festive period 🎄
🗣 "𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲"#PLonPrime is LIVE on Prime Video: https://t.co/i14Y4Ee229 pic.twitter.com/vAo92ERoIe
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) December 30, 2021
The former Arsenal man, who was speaking on Amazon Prime, said: “I think everyone is mixing Covid and the festive period.
“I do understand that now, because of what is happening with Covid, some managers are like ‘hang on a minute, this is happening while we’re playing most games in the league’.
“I get it, but it’s always been [like this] and will always be, it’s part of the culture here, people go on Boxing Day and watch a game, New Years Eve or whatever it is.”
The Frenchman also insisted that the ‘top teams’ have the players and squad size to be able to deal with the busy schedule.
He added: “I think people are confusing Covid and the fixtures, because if Covid wasn’t around, people wouldn’t have complained as much, especially teams at the top.
“Let’s be honest, they have players to be able to deal with that.”
“Liverpool the other day didn’t play and ended up not winning at Leicester.”
The Reds were beaten 1-0 at Leicester on Tuesday, having enjoyed an extended break after their Boxing Day clash against Leeds was postponed due to Covid.
Related links:
- Ralf Rangnick urges people to get vaccinated and ‘follow medical advice’
- EFL end match-day Covid testing in hope of limiting last-minute postponements
- Sean Dyche claims player welfare is ‘off the scale’ following Jurgen Klopp’s comments
