Former Celtic defender Virgil van Dijk thinks there is too much football these days
The Liverpool man is likely to feature in around 60 matches this season for club and country. As football competitions continue to expand, that number is only growing to go further.
The Euros became a 24-team tournament in 2016 while the World Cup will have 48 teams the next time it is played in 2026. The UEFA Champions League will also feature significantly more football next season — something that could directly impact Celtic.
Hoops chairman Peter Lawwell called on organisations to assess the fixture calendar earlier in the week. The European Club Association vice-chairman reckons football has pushed things “that bit too far”.
Van Dijk clearly agrees with Lawwell‘s viewpoint, as he shared the view players have.
“In England, we believe the schedules are too busy,” he said while on international duty with the Netherlands. (talkSPORT)
“The players are getting paid well but it should never come at the cost of our health. We keep having to play more and more games. We as players should start saying something about it, contribute to a solution.”
The 32-year-old was then asked if he would waive some of his salary in future if it meant he played fewer matches.
“No, I am not prepared to give up 10%,” he said to the journalist. “I don’t think that should depend on my salary. You are now trying to get me to say something nice.
“The Nations League that comes with it, for example, does not go to my salary. We get bonuses, but that is not a guarantee.”
Next season, Celtic will play 38 Premiership matches. We could also face a minimum of eight matches in the UEFA Champions League, while the cup competitions could see us play as many as nine more.
When you add in friendlies and international obligations for a number of our players, it’s a pretty tall order.
It seems like this is a story we’re going to hear more and more about over the coming years.
