Jurgen Klopp slams FIFA Club World Cup as football's worst idea
Klopp no fan of Club World Cup Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has criticised the ongoing FIFA Club World Cup. Photo: AFP
Image: AFP
Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has labelled the ongoing FIFA Club World Cup in the United States “football’s worst idea.”
The revamped Club World Cup, featuring 32 teams from around the world, kicked off in Miami on June 14 and will conclude on July 13 at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
For some teams, it will drastically reduce the amount of rest time between seasons. According to reports, FIFPro recommends that all professional footballers be given a mandatory eight-week break between seasons, with four weeks of that being a complete rest period and four weeks dedicated to retraining.
Due to the Club World Cup, clubs like Chelsea might have to reduce their players' time off to just three weeks. And in South Africa, while players from Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs have resumed pre-season training, Mamelodi Sundowns have just started their off-season break, and are at risk of falling behind in preparing for the next campaign.
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In an interview with German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, the former Liverpool boss made his feelings known about the tournament.
"It's all about the game and not the surrounding events – and that's why the Club World Cup is the worst idea ever implemented in football in this regard," Klopp said.
"People who have never had or do not have anything to do with day-to-day business anymore are coming up with something… There is insane money for participating, but it's also not for every club.
"Last year it was the Copa [America] and the European Championship, this year it's the Club World Cup, and next year the World Cup. That means no real recovery for the players involved, neither physically nor mentally."
He continued: "I have serious fears that players will suffer injuries they've never had before next season. If not next season, then it will happen at the World Cup or afterwards.
"We constantly expect the players to go into every game as if it is their last. We tell them that 70 or 75 times a year. But it can't go on like this.
"We have to make sure they have breaks, because if they don't get them, they won't be able to deliver top performances – and if they can't achieve that anymore, the entire product loses value."
AFP