Busy Festive Period may be harming BPL heavyweights in Europe

Photo: Champions League draw (AP)

With the busy and exciting Festive Period about to take centrestage in the Barclays Premier League, other leagues around Europe are already on a break as they recognize the Christmas holidays. The top clubs in Italy, Spain and Germany in particular who are still in the Champions League will be afforded time off, which could be of huge significance as their players can get some much needed rest as well as time to relax with their families.

The Premier League is often mentioned as the best league in the world and it’s excitement particularly during Christmas has been a joy to watch over the years. During this period, each teams plays 4-5 games over the duration of about 10-15 days with the games coming thick and fast. While it may be great as the TV audience should increase as well as providing entertainment for the rest of the world, the Festive Period may be a contributing factor for the poor results suffered by the English clubs in the latter stages of the Champions League in recent times.

In a league already known for its competitiveness, physical nature and pace, every game must be played at a high intensity from start to finish or your team could drop points. The energy needed to perform week-in-week-out is very demanding and for players to take part in games every 2-3 days might be overbearing. This combined with players jetting off on international duty as well as hours of travelling leads to exhaustion which might be affecting the performance on the pitch in the latter stages of the season.

While players of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus just to name a few are with their families relaxing their minds from a tough first half of the season, the BPL stars are on the pitch digging-in and fighting for much needed points. The demands of the league is very unique and based on the recent results in the Champions League, the PFA may need to reconsider this approach over the holidays.

There have been players complaining of exhaustion, eg Raheem Sterling, as they have played a significant number of games over the duration of the season. Squad rotation is now a significant aspect of modern-day football as managers, coaches and the medical staff seek to keep players fresh in order to have them at the optimum level throughout the season.

It can also be argued that other teams around Europe are more technically gifted and have better players but teams such as Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund have often been praised for their exceptional work rate. The intensity and competitiveness of their domestic leagues may not be at the level of the BPL which may also contribute to the endurance they have shown in the deep stages of the Champions League.

However when all is said and done, the term ‘rest’ always seems to emerge whenever there are discussions over the form of players or the reason a player is able to stay healthy while maintaining and improving his form throughout the season.

The number of English clubs advancing into the semi-finals and final has decreased over the past 3-5 years in a time where the league has gotten more competitive and improved in quality. Maybe its not a coincidence because players now have to work harder in training, on the pitch and with the burden of the Festive Period with no time to recuperate, rest or fatigue could very well be a contributing factor.