Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has once again voiced his displeasure at the English football calendar, admitting his side’s congested fixture schedule is ‘too much’ with their Carabao Cup quarter-final tie still uncertain.
Liverpool advanced to the last eight of the League Cup after defeating Arsenal on penalties on Wednesday night, though their quarter-final tie with Aston Villa currently clashes with their participation in the Club World Cup.
The club’s Champions League win back in June means they will fly to Qatar to participate in the inter-continental tournament next month, where they will play in the semi-final on December 18 before playing in either the final or third/fourth-place play-off three days later.
The Carabao Cup quarter-finals are also scheduled for the week commencing December 16, and Klopp gave no assurances of the Reds’ continued participation in the tournament, though their clash with Villa is expected to be re-arranged.
Speaking on the fixture clash ahead of this weekends Premier League game, also against Villa, Klopp said: “There is no final decision yet [if we will play the quarter-final]. If we would play while we’re in Qatar then we would need two different teams but we cannot leave any players at home for the Carabao Cup.
“We have two games there in a very busy period. It’s not that we can go there with 11 players and let them play the two games in Qatar and the other guys play at home in Aston Villa. It doesn’t work like this. We have to make a decision but not yet.”
Klopp’s side are currently facing the prospect of playing nine fixtures across four competitions during a congested fixture schedule in December, a scenario which has angered the Liverpool boss who has once again called for changes to the English football calendar.
“It’s obvious that it’s too much, absolutely obvious. Everybody involved in the game will tell you that, and you know it as well,” he added.
“Let us have a look how they deal with it. If you see the schedule coming up, it is all okay.
“For example, Premier League – what a competition, then Carabao Cup a nice competition – what a wonderful game we had the other night.
“But then at the end of January after a very busy schedule in December, we have two semi-finals. It is an easy decision for me to say, okay if you want to keep the competition why two semi-finals?”
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