“You have to laugh” – Antonio Conte talks Premier League postponing match versus Arsenal

This past weekend, the Premier League accepted Arsenal’s request to postpone their North London Derby matchup against Tottenham Hotspur due to Covid-19 cases, injuries, and players at the African Cup of Nations. 

There was plenty of criticism towards the league accepting the request despite other clubs being forced to play while dealing with worse circumstances. Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville stated that clubs would use this as a loophole if they didn’t have their best squad.

When asked about the decision to postpone the North London Derby, manager Antonio Conte stated his confusion. Furthermore, he added that the schedule is becoming a mess as only a handful of clubs have played all their matches. 

“It is a mess now. There is maybe only one team or maybe two who have played all their league games — City and maybe West Ham,” Conte said, per the Daily Mail. “The others have played 18. Burnley 17. Then they postponed the game against Watford. It is a big mess for sure.”

“This is the first time in my life that there is a league that postpone the game for injuries. You have to learn to laugh; you have to laugh because they have totally changed the vision. It was a big damage to Tottenham from the Premier League. They penalized us in a bad way. We were penalized and from the Premier League, not from UEFA.”

Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers defended the league’s decision to accept Arsenal’s bit to postpone the match against Tottenham. Rodgers further disagreed with Conte stating that playing games with U23 players aren’t ideal, considering some aren’t ready to play Premier League football. 

“There is enough clarity. The rules are clear. Every coach and manager wants to play, but not every Under 23 player is ready to play Premier League football,” Rodgers said.