Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been joined in his demands for the reintroduction of the five subs rule by Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola and Chelsea’s Frank Lampard.
The cry that echoes among all the three managers is that of ‘protecting the players.’ Their calls for more substitutions are mostly fuelled by the packed schedule that the players are subjected to.
The pressure is even more for the teams competing in Europe, as their players have to play twice per week at the very least. The fact that the Champions League and Europa League allow five substitutions and the Premier League doesn’t creates a gap between the two competitions, with managers clearly preferring one over the other.
The impact of the hectic schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic has been felt heavily in some of the biggest teams in Europe in the form of injuries. Especially the niggling injuries that have plagued the big teams, keeping the big stars off the pitch.
Sergio Aguero and Fabinho are some of the most recent examples of superstars that have been ruled out of the side due to the hectic schedule.
As with all important decisions in the Premier League, a vote had been conducted to decide whether the five subs rule would carry on to the 20/21 season.
The motion was not passed due to the smaller clubs in England placing a very strong argument against the bigger teams in the division.
The teams that usually finish in the bottom half argued that the financially well off teams would have an unfair advantage due to their ability to maintain a bigger and better paid squad than them.
The argument holds true since the financially smaller clubs had a hard time even making up the numbers when the Premier League introduced the five subs rule during the back end of last season.
It is unlikely that the League will change its stance on the issue given a vote did take place. Hence, the man-management skills of the gaffers will be tested during this trying time.
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