“We think it is absurd” – Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders slams Premier League decision

Jurgen Klopp’s assistant manager at Liverpool, Pep Lijnders has slammed the Premier League for deciding to go ahead with the festive fixtures.

Liverpool are among a slew of clubs who are coping with the absence of multiple players due to positive COVID-19 tests. The recent surge of the Omicron variant of the virus has led to a rise in cases in the UK.

Manager Jurgen Klopp opines that fixtures should have been called off. However, Premier League clubs on Monday decided against the suspension of any festive-day fixtures, even those between the 28th and 30th of December.

Lijnders, calling the decision absurd, said:

“We really believe we are in the position to protect our players. We think it is absurd we have to play within 48 hours because it is a much higher risk of injury, and the quality of the game will not be as good. If players are more fatigued, we don’t get the offensive attitude and quality we want." "

If our players are more fatigued, they don’t make as quick decisions; they are not as brave; they are not as creative; there are not as many spontaneous actions, we will play the ball to the side instead of forward."

---

Liverpool will need to rely on youngsters during festive-day fixtures amidst COVID-19 woes

Pep Lijnders rued the decision to not cancel Premier League fixtures during the festive period.

He said that the clubs (plagued by the COVID-19 pandemic) would have been able to cope better if some of the games were cancelled. Many top clubs, including Chelsea and Manchester United, apart from Liverpool, have seen multiple players taking time off after positive COVID-19 tests.

In such a scenario, the unaffected players are also at risk. In that regard, Liverpool’s assistant manager said that it would have been wise to cancel some of the games, noting:

"The quality of the game goes down the more fatigue there is. We have to respect the fact that a Premier League (team) needs 72 hours to recover if we want more quality. Football is a team sport, so the moment we lose players, we have to push (other) players through these situations, and the risk becomes bigger."

"You have to ask the teams why they want to play in these circumstances, but I think it would be a wise decision (to postpone). Because of our individual situation here with the Covid cases being this fresh, we would have more time before the next game.”

Liverpool are scheduled to play Leicester City in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals before Christmas. Ljinders believes the team will have to rely on youngsters for that game. He added:

"We always rely on them. The one thing if you want to have a healthy club is to have a proper inside pathway, that the academy is important, that the academy has a chance to improve inside our club to become first-team players."

The Liverpool assistant manager highlighted the club's penchant to blood young players, saying:

“That is why we construct our squad like we construct it, why we give so many young players opportunities. We have five Liverpool debuts in the League Cup this year. That is healthy; it is something we want."

"We have the talents – it’s not as if we don’t have it – but we want to give them the opportunity to grow inside our club. If (senior) players are unavailable, we see it as a challenge, but it is something which will create new players, and that is what we want as well; so it’s only a good thing.”

Needless to say, the red side of Merseyside is not happy with the Premier League’s decision to not suspend any fixtures during the festive period.