You can’t blame the gaffer for speaking out, he’s right in every respect and the net result of the latest International break has been carnage.
Let me – let you – into a little secret. I’ve worked on a number of football sites, and currently speak with countless folk who have been in the same industry for over a decade. International football is of little interest to most people, and this not opinion, it’s a fact borne out by traffic crashing routinely crashing through the floor, every time the Premier League is put on hold.
That isn’t the common perception of course, the back pages of the now free-falling printed press are awash with articles, and many games are suddenly on terrestrial television. This is simply because the pages cannot be let blank and these games are comparatively inexpensive for broadcasters to pick up.
Whoever sanctioned the frivolous commuting of footballers about the globe to facilitate this latest round of fixtures needs to have a sit down and think about the potential damage that has been caused. It is evident that players were exposed to uncontrolled environments, infection has spread – causing disruption to the sport – which is already in economic trouble – and potentially putting vulnerable people at risk.
Will anyone listen to José, or will he be branded by dull people as ‘playing games as usual’?