Harry Redknapp lashes out the International friendlies schedule?
It has always been a major debate when it comes to choosing between club and country. The topic has come to the fore once again when Tottenham Hotspurs manager played down the international friendlies schedule. The premier league is scheduled to start by 14th August and the friendlies are to take place on August 10th and 11th.
The manager is perhaps justified to condemn such a schedule and described such matches as “meaningless friendlies”. The manager was upset by the decision of various international bodies such as FIFA who has reprimanded them for such a move. Spurs players will be flown out of the country for two days and take part in the training camp. Most of them would then need some time to rest and would miss the start of the upcoming season. So much so, Redknapp claimed that the players who make it into the national teams wouldn’t be available till Friday, which is just a day before Tottenham play their first match of the EPL against Manchester City.
All of the premier league manager’s have only just managed to get hold of their World Cup playing players, and are busy figuring out tactics and formations for the new season. These friendlies would therefore become a big hurdle for the thinking process as the manager would still be unsure as to who should play in the starting XI, the various substitutions and what formation to play against which opposition. International friendlies also create a fear of injury amongst managers as any star performer can pick up a knock which might ruin the start of the season and the plans associated with the injured player.
The question is whether these friendlies are that important or not? The World Cup just ended in July and Euro 2012 qualifiers aren’t due till Early September. Then why should EPL clubs let go of their top players at such a crucial stage? Is there a need to have these unimportant friendlies just at the start of the new season for both the EPL as well as the Scottish premier league?
The League 1 would also be affected, as it starts just a weekend before these international friendlies which would lead to fatigues for players just in the opening weeks of the new season. The French players wouldn’t be expected to play in the coming games and will therefore be resting. The coming week would therefore be full of second grade teams competing against each other which creates a bad image. It is therefore expected that the star players would be resting at home on the weekend, and their less talented young team mates would be looking to defend club honor.
FIFA should’ve consulted the league schedules before planning such matches, and should’ve scheduled them to a date which was acceptable. Not only are the leagues about to begin but the qualifiers for various Europeans competitions as well as other tournaments are about to start. Getting the season to start on a positive vibe is crucial for the well-being of any club, and managers would want their star player to be fit, fresh and focused on the club. Failing at such a stage may cost the clubs a spot in the European competitions, which would create a lot disappointment for the players as well as the manager.
Managers would only be praying and hoping that their star players come back in one piece, and not pick up an injury which would threaten their league run-in overall. Football fans and pundits know what injuries can do to a club as seen from the example of Liverpool last season. Both of their star players Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres couldn’t feature in most of the matches and Liverpool dropped down from being the runner-up team to the 7th spot last season.
This topic is however so vast and debatable that it can be labeled as a never ending controversy between FIFA and UEFA. Both of them should work as a team to determine the schedules, so that both of them are happy. If both the bodies work together and co-ordinate efficiently, the club vs. national team conflict could be resolved, as none of them could blame anyone.
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