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Serie A Injury Crisis: Should The Players Go On Strike? (Clip From Ep. 463)
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After Inter Milan President Beppe Marotta issued statement ahead of Roma match arguing for reduced number of matches due to the explosion of injuries due to too many matches, Nima Tavallaey and Carlo Garganese debate, discuss and analyze what can be done to address the injury epidemic plaguing football currently, including if the players should go on strike.
This is an extended clip from this week's free Monday episode of The Italian Football Podcast which is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google podcasts.
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Transcript
Introduction to the Podcast
00:00:02
Speaker
Welcome to the Italian football podcast.
Injury Crisis in Football
00:00:05
Speaker
I'll tell you what else isn't good is the number of injuries in football. We already did a couple of what I did a couple of weeks ago. I did an interview about the the ACL epidemic in football.
Juventus, Inter, and Atalanta Injury Challenges
00:00:18
Speaker
But if we look at injuries as a whole, it's it's a huge, huge problem. There's a massive injury crisis at so many Italian clubs right now. Juventus are completely decimated. and They can barely put out a bench right now. I mean, it's this horrific Juventus injury crisis. Inter now, as well, decimated in midfield. They lost two players in in the first 25 minutes of of this game against Roma with Telenoglu.
00:00:41
Speaker
and a chairbye and they've already got a lot of injuries in midfield already.
Serie A Clubs' Injury Woes
00:00:45
Speaker
At Atlanta, their Scudetto chances were were destroyed before the season even began because of because of injury. you know Two ACLs to Skamaka and Scalvini and their defence is completely decimated right now. They've got so many players out in defence.
00:00:59
Speaker
Bologna, completely decimated, they're without half their first team at the moment.
European Football and Tournament Impact
00:01:03
Speaker
Genoa, if they're not enough in crisis already, they're without seven first team players. It's horrific, their injury crisis. I could go on and on, that's just in Serie A. If you want to go around Europe and see all all the all the injury problems ah around Europe and other leagues,
00:01:19
Speaker
you know, we've got Euro 2024 that we saw. I mean, Italy were decimated for that for that tournament. So many key players injured. The Netherlands, the same. I mean, so many, the football was really bad. The teams looked exhausted.
Match Overload and Player Fatigue
00:01:32
Speaker
All the big all the big teams I thought were were really poor, except for maybe, except for Spain and maybe Germany weren't too bad. um So, you know, there's that. And then there's what is becoming a really, really big discussion point now around Europe is the increase in games around Europe. I mean this season the Champions League increased by four games a season, two more group games, an extra knockout round. There's this ridiculous club World Cup at the end of the season. The World Cup's been expanded from 32 to 48 teams.
00:02:08
Speaker
The Nations League has replaced friendlies. It's the same number of games, but they're more they obviously they're more competitive games. And we haven't had, as I've said so many times in this, but we haven't had a proper season break since before the COVID pandemic, since the summer of 2019. That's the last time that the players actually had a had a proper break, either in the summer or or a season break before the new season started.
Calls for Reduced Matches
00:02:32
Speaker
um So this has all led to, you know, a lot of complaints. Rodgeri said earlier this season, talking about the threat of strike. And then I saw Marotta was very strong with his words before the game. This was before the game against throwing out the way, before these two injuries. And he said, and I read out his quotes, he said,
00:02:51
Speaker
There have been circuit 100 injuries for players who also have international duty and we need to safeguard their health. It is not an easy situation because we need we need to sit around the table and recognise that the fixture list has to be cut back. What we need and currently do not have is a single place where all those involved can meet and discuss it together.
Should Footballers Strike?
00:03:10
Speaker
There are activities for clubs, for UEFA, for FIFA and that confrontation has only just begun. The number of games must be reduced because the pace of the sport is now so high that it leads to more errors and more injuries. Far superior to the average that we've seen in previous years. So I'm going to make this very simple. I'm going to ask this very simple to know. Should footballers go on strike?
00:03:36
Speaker
I think it its if it continues like this, it'll be you know and inevitable. I mean, I've said it many, many times when we've discussed this topic that something horrible will happen before something is done.
Can Increasing Squad Sizes Help?
00:03:49
Speaker
And I'm i'm scared that i'm scared that we will we will end up there soon. Well, hasn't something already horrible happened? No, I mean horrible as in death. Someone will die.
00:04:00
Speaker
like permanently injure themselves in a very horrible way because before something before they do something about it unfortunately that's just how it how they work how how it works um that some ah they don't do anything to stop something horrible happening but once it happens then they everyone takes a you know then they have to stop and calm down but i i think it's i think we're headed towards a tragedy um and a tragedy um that will lead to to something being done because you know the the only other option is you know extending the squad sizes to 25, 27, 28, up to 30 in order to be able to handle this because it's too many games. Marotta was asked that as well, by the way.
Financial and Logistical Challenges of Squad Expansion
00:04:50
Speaker
and yeah He was asked that and he he basically
00:04:53
Speaker
kind of said what I think which is it's not really workable because you know it's just not workable from logistically just but also from like in terms of you know how do you how do you it's impossible to train 30 players it's impossible it's just it's just not workable on a training ground and some clubs can't afford it either you know it's and also What will happen is because that the stakes are so high and because you know if you're challenging for titles or you're playing big knockout games, you end up playing your best players. You know but you you don't you don't rotate and risk players because you know you want to win. and and so I don't think that would work either.
00:05:36
Speaker
No, I don't think so either. um But that's the only other option. But yeah, I do think that they should do something. I think the players unions should put their foot feet down. And I think they'll probably have support from the clubs here as well, to a certain extent, because clubs don't enjoy paying players wages, high wages when they can't play them because they're injured.
Reducing Teams and Formats to Ease Pressure
00:05:57
Speaker
And they need to work this out. The number of games need to be worked, need to be reduced. I you know, my position, I think we should go back to an 18 team Serie A.
00:06:06
Speaker
um I like the new format of the Champions League, but I think there's too many teams in it. I'd like to keep the format, but keep it like it was before with six games.
00:06:17
Speaker
um And yeah, but that's pretty much where I am with it. I think that this Club World Cup in the season, the players now, they need to really put their foot down.
Impact of Club World Cup on Player Health
00:06:30
Speaker
and and just say we're not playing it. Enough is enough. It's a joke. we're all Listen, we haven't even played this club World Cup. And look at the look at the number at the increase in injuries and the increase in ACL injuries.
00:06:42
Speaker
and we know that but fatigue and exhaustion is is the the biggest factor with with ACL injuries because it weakens the muscles and it puts too much pressure um on but the ACL and that's what happens. We haven't even played the club world cup and we're already the epidemic the ACL epidemic and this injury epidemic is already, I mean, it's there to be
Tournament-Style Qualifiers: A Solution?
00:07:08
Speaker
seen. We've seen the numbers, the numbers speak for themselves. um We haven't even played the club World Cup yet. You know, what's going to happen once you've played that club World Cup? And we have another summer with no break. And then we go into the 2026 World Cup and expanded World Cup, where there's another summer without break. And then we go into that, can you imagine that 20, can you imagine the 2026, 2070s when we've had six years in a row with no break?
00:07:30
Speaker
I mean, you think it's bad now with injuries? What's it going to be like then? It's just absurd. If I'm the players, put your foot down and say, we're not playing. And if you are, and if they do end up going, if I'm a player and um and then and my team is going to, I'm just taking an injury. i'm doing I'm doing like Ryan Giggs used to do for Man United and just just pretend you're injured before every international game, like he used to do it before every Wales game. He used to just pretend he was injured. Ferguson used to say, I'm just say you're injured, don't go. I'm not going to that club World Cup.
00:08:00
Speaker
I'm failing injury and I'm saying, you know what, I don't care about this Mickey Mouse tournament. um I'm going to be fit for the next season, or want a proper rest. And i'm um I'm thinking of the World Cup in 2026. I'm not playing. That's what the play that's what the plays should do.
Balancing International and Club Fixtures
00:08:14
Speaker
rather rather than playing against the... I don't think it's the Club World Cup as such. I think that's just too reactionary to just look at that and point at that. It's all of it. It's all of it, yes. But I've used that as an example. Yeah, i know I know. But I'm saying if you want to do something properly, because OK, remove the Club World Cup. That's three games group stages, potentially eight games all all along. Fine, I get that. That's not a lot. The problem is the Nations League. The problem is more games in the Champions League that never stops, just keeps going, rolling, rolling every single week.
00:08:43
Speaker
Because of it increased there too many games in the leagues like if you're gonna do something you need to do it across the board I think the Champions League format is great with the with the way that the draw is not having group stages like that But a league stage fewer games. I think the seria has no business being 20 games at 20 teams. It should be 18.
00:09:01
Speaker
the nation's league needs to be abolished. It's as simple as that. It's a stupid stupid waste of a tournament. well to be honest with the nation's league i don I slightly more competitive because those friendlis were still there there hasn't been an increase in games with a nation's league so i don't think that's Well, the intensity has increased because if you remember its during friendlies, the top players didn't used to get called up or they could knock go or whatever. This is stupid. Yeah, the intensity, but I think that's the least of the problems. The big problems is the increase in games because everything else has
Financial Resistance to Fixture Reduction
00:09:35
Speaker
expanded. The World Cup has expanded 32 to 48.
00:09:38
Speaker
the chas e that's once every four years that's not the issue the issue is like i said it's there's there's too many games being played at club level um and of course with the nation's league now turning the friendlies what used to be the friendly break into more competitive games that actually means something where you can qualify for tournaments and the world cup on top of that a club world cup on top of that No, they they need to get rid of the nation's land. One physio said, and I actually i think he has a point, that actually by increasing to five subs from three subs is actually causing more injuries than with three. And the reason why is because you've got five subs, players are coming on, that the intensity of the games are much, much more intense.
00:10:23
Speaker
right than they were before because players are coming on five more five players are coming on in the second half of matches and ah you know of a super fit and can run more can sprint more and are increasing the intensity of the game and for the tie especially against the tired players And that that is actually leading to to more more injuries because the games are are more into even more intense because of the extra subs. And that that is that is what actually leading to more injuries than three subs where you had more tired players on them on the pitch and the level and the intensity of the game dropped as the game went that way. That's an interesting point. That's an interesting point, but I would need some data to back that up. um i'm I'm not saying it's not right, but I would need some more data to back that up. But it's an interesting point and I think it should be looked at.
00:11:07
Speaker
My point is simply there are too many games across the club and international level um and the they need to cut it down or extend or make the squads bigger but that's not sustainable because google clubs can't afford that.
Restructuring International Fixtures
00:11:21
Speaker
Like you see what I'm saying, like at the end of the day, Serie A, all these other clubs, all these leagues need to address one of these issues. The Premier League will never in a gajillion years accept to going to an 18-team league. It's just not going to happen. It's never going to happen. And I don't think the city or the small clubs, you'll never find a majority in the city out to do that either. You're just never going to do that and it's never going to happen. So the the the the the question remains, okay, well, the Champions League
00:11:53
Speaker
you You can keep the format, but reduce it to the same number of things as it was before. um the The Nations League is stupid. No one cares. Literally, no one cares. Get rid of that. um and And as for the qualifiers for the World Cups and Euros, I actually think what Arsen Wenger suggested a couple of years ago is spot on. Have it at the end of the season, like a tournament.
00:12:21
Speaker
like where you play all the qualifiers all at once and you that i agree with because i thought well but you don't have home and away instead you have like say for example you divide all the club teams or nations in Europe into as many groups as they have now but you host a tournament in different countries in the summer where they play once not home and away once over a couple of weeks and they go to the whoever wins the group goes blah blah blah and then you have the playoffs if you finish second you know what i mean like that but i have it like a tournament like that at the end of the season instead of this and no more home and away just one game one-off games like a tournament mini tournament yeah that reduces it it makes it more interesting what you're talking about qualifying here yeah qualifiers turn the qualifiers into to the world cup and euros into like a mini tournament at the end of the season
00:13:11
Speaker
um i don't know I don't know if I agree on the home in a way, but I do i do agree. No, you play it at a neutral venue. yeah im much Yeah, I'm not sure if I agree with that, but I do agree with with playing it with but playing it in all in one go, because that then you get rid of the travel. And I think that also impacts on injuries, that that the travel, the exhaustion, especially players coming from travelling long
Financial Implications of Fixture Changes
00:13:32
Speaker
distances. Or you can do it like the Champions League format does it, like the the new one does now, where you have a league, a long league, where they play what the the league stage is what eight games some you have home some you have away the top 16 go through just see one thing like there's ways around that the end of the day whatever they do they're only going to do it if it's financially gonna they could do that that would be financially you you would never ever ever sell it in a boardroom to anybody well we're going to reduce the number of games for for player safety
00:14:05
Speaker
But you're going to lose loads of money. It's not what you're going to say, but it's what they're going to think. How are they going to think that? Because they're going to lose money. They're not going to lose money. They are. You would use a Premier League season or a Serie A season. I'm not talking about the Premier League. I'm not talking about that. I'm not talking about the international football. As I said, I literally said like in Minnegov.
00:14:30
Speaker
you're never ever going to find a majority in the Premier League or the Serie A or the Ligue 1 or the Bundesliga or La Liga to reduce the leagues from 2018. It's never going to happen. But what you can do is you can reduce the number of games at international level like the Nations League, get rid of the club World Cup. When it comes to the international break, when it comes to qualifiers, you can reduce that by creating like a tournament, a mini tournament where you play You don't play home in a way. You either play it like a tournament like that.
00:15:02
Speaker
or like like we you have like six venue, six countries that host it, and everyone plays each other once, or you do it like the Champions League version that we have now, where you play once, one team once, you you you you you do the draw like they do the Champions League, and you have a league stage where the top, I don't know, 16 go through, places 17 to 32 have a playoff, you reduce the games and you create more hype around it.
00:15:29
Speaker
If you know what I mean, that you can market and sell more than having Sweden travel to Liechtenstein and Liechtenstein travel to Sweden. I mean, it's just hook that does not bring any revenue. I can guarantee you that much. ae So my my point is you can do it by being smarter. There are solutions. But that's just international football you're talking about. that's not Yeah, because then you would reduce that by quite a lot.
00:15:52
Speaker
Yeah, that's just the number of games. The money is in club football, unfortunately, and that they're not going to accept, you know, any of the leagues won't do it. There's never going to, I don't even talk about that. The league's not going to do it. UEFA's not going to do it. I think it should be 18, but it's never going to happen. So it's pointless to talk about. My point is keep the format of the Champions League, but reduce the teams to what it was. The problem is, there's too many club games. There's not too many international games. There isn't. It hasn't been an increase. I look at it the number of games in total.
00:16:20
Speaker
for the players and given that it's impossible to to reduce the number of club games, then you have to reduce somewhere else. The Nations League is something new, it didn't exist, it doesn't need to exist.
00:16:31
Speaker
um You can change the number of qualify. I don't think that international football should suffer because club football just wants to keep increasing the number of games. ah mean I don't think so. I don't think international football, because there hasn't been an increase in games in in the international football, yes. But it's the number of games we could total. we can I know, but the the reason the number of games in total is more is because there's been so ridiculous increase in club games. In international football, yes, I do agree that they they can they can ah restructure it and maybe do it in in in like one chunk.
00:17:00
Speaker
you know, maybe play all the games in a one month period. And maybe there's a different way of organizing it like you've suggested. But but I think ultimately they need to decrease the number of club games they have to it's just absurd. And players are playing 70 club games, 70 club games a season. Forget that international games. If some people play 60 to 70 club games a season, even if you pla your play you're playing no international games at all. That's too many games. I mean, it's ridiculous. um So but anyway,
00:17:27
Speaker
with we Something needs to be done about it, that's for sure. wherere I'm sure this this topic will come up again.