LONDON: Jürgen Klopp seems sure why FIFA is so determined to gain support for World Cups every two years, and he’s not pleased by apparent financial motivations.
“In the end,” the Liverpool manager said Friday, “it’s all about money, that’s how it is.”
Across in Germany, Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann was as concerned about the impact on FIFA’s flagship events if the frequency was doubled.
“I’m no friend of that,” Nagelsmann said. “On the one hand, it affects the overload on players and there’s a devaluation of the World Cup. If it takes place more often, it doesn’t have the same significance.”
That’s the type of dissent Arsene Wenger hasn’t highlighted in presentations to media this week during what FIFA calls a consultation process. The former Arsenal manager, in his role as FIFA’s chief of global football development, is advancing a vision that so concerns two of the game’s current great coaches.
Klopp is a respected figure in FIFA. Just three weeks ago, Klopp was being honored by FIFA, receiving the men’s coach of the year award from Wenger.
“There’s not another sport in world I’m sure with such a relentless calendar, no physical sport,” Klopp said. “There are more demanding sports in the world, like athletics, marathon runs, all kind of things of course. But they don’t run 20, 30 or 40 a year, of course not and other physical sports don’t have this calendar.
“We all know why it’s happening whatever people say that it is about giving different countries the opportunity, that’s why we have more teams in the World Cup.”
But ultimately Klopp sees those political arguments as a mask for attempts to generate more cash for FIFA.
“That’s fine,” he said. “We do it not because of money but because we love it. That’s why we started it but of course we get lots of money as well.
“But in the end at one point, somebody has to start understanding that without the players — the most important ingredients of this wonderful game — we cannot play it, that’s how it is ... nobody is more important than the players.”
FIFA flew former players into Qatar during this week as part of a nominal consultation process.
Brazil great Ronaldo, former Denmark goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel and Australia record scorer Tim Cahill were enlisted for a news conference backing changing the four-year World Cup cycle in place since the first edition in 1930.
But such clear support is less evident from active figures in the sport.
“There’s the flood of scheduling, which is getting more and more and is sometimes hard to control,” Nagelsmann said. “We all have to, most of all in Germany and at FC Bayern, try to stay within sensible financial boundaries. If we have more and more games, whether it’s national or international games, then the squad just has to get bigger and bigger and you have a cost explosion. That all has to be capped and it’s not that simple.”
Wenger has argued that FIFA’s priorities were less travel for players and less disruption for their clubs plus giving young talent worldwide more meaningful games. The current system — that typically sees players based in Europe taking long-haul flights home throughout the season in short breaks for national-team games — could be replaced by a single block of fewer qualifying games in October. International tournaments would occupy June each year.
It’s unclear whether it needs more regular World Cups to introduce the mandatory 25-day vacation in July envisaged for players before rejoining their clubs.
“I think this flood of games doesn’t mean that the quality of individual games is better, but rather worse, and I think that if football becomes more unattractive, then in the end there will be less money flowing,” Nagelsmann said.
“People won’t be watching the TV as much and, if something else on TV is clearly more interesting than the football, because the players … can’t run any more, then that doesn’t do us any good.”
Klopp, Nagelsmann decry FIFA’s plans for biennial World Cups
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Klopp, Nagelsmann decry FIFA’s plans for biennial World Cups
- “In the end,” the Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp said Friday, “it’s all about money, that’s how it is”
- Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann was as concerned about the impact on FIFA's flagship events if the frequency was doubled
Arsenal get title boost as Man City and Villa both drop points
- Second-placed City remain five points behind Arsenal who can stretch the lead to eight if they beat Liverpool on Thursday
- Third-placed Villa are also five behind after they could only draw 0-0 in a dour contest at Crystal Palace
- Antoine Semenyo gave Bournemouth fans a farewell gift before his expected move to Manchester City, scoring in stoppage time to give his side a 3-2 victory at home against Tottenham
LONDON: Arsenal’s Premier League title prospects were enhanced without them even kicking a ball on Wednesday as their closest challengers Manchester City and Aston Villa both dropped points.
Erling Haaland scored his 150th goal for City as he put them in front against Brighton and Hove Albion from the penalty spot but Kaoru Mitoma equalized for the visitors on the hour with the game finishing 1-1.
It was the third successive draw for stuttering City who were held by Sunderland on New Year’s Day and by Chelsea at the weekend when they also conceded an equalizer.
“The result is the result. I’m not a person who believes what we have done isn’t fair,” City manager Pep Guardiola said.
Second-placed City remain five points behind Arsenal who can stretch the lead to eight if they beat Liverpool on Thursday.
Third-placed Villa are also five behind after they could only draw 0-0 in a dour contest at Crystal Palace, Ollie Watkins going closest for Villa with a late effort against the woodwork.
Chelsea’s new manager Liam Rosenior watched on in the stands at Craven Cottage as his new club went down 2-1 at Fulham after having Marc Cucurella sent off midway through the first half.
Raul Jimenez gave Fulham the lead and although Liam Delap equalized for the visitors, Harry Wilson sealed the points for Fulham. Defeat left Chelsea down in eighth place.
Sesko scores twice
Two days after sacking manager Ruben Amorim, Manchester United could only draw 2-2 at 19th-placed Burnley.
Benjamin Sesko scored twice for United, doubling his tally for the season, but it was not enough to give caretaker manager Darren Fletcher a win as Jaidon Anthony’s equalizer earned Burnley a point. United slipped to seventh.
Brentford moved into fifth spot as Brazilian striker Igor Thiago followed up his hat-trick at the weekend against Everton with two goals in a 3-0 home victory over Sunderland to take his league tally for the season to 16.
“He’s a complete center forward,” said Brentford manager Keith Andrews. “I wouldn’t be swapping him for anybody.”
Newcastle United trailed three times in a thriller at home to Leeds United but emerged with an astonishing 4-3 victory to move into the top six thanks to a last-gasp goal by Harvey Barnes after Bruno Guimaraes had equalized for the hosts from the penalty spot in the 91st minute.
Barnes’s goal arrived in the 102nd minute, the latest winning goal in Premier League history.
Bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers’ recent upturn continued with a 1-1 draw at Everton.
Everton ended the game with nine men after Michael Keane, who scored their goal, and Jack Grealish were both sent off late on — Keane for an apparent hair pull on Tolu Arokodare.
‘No man deserves it more’
Antoine Semenyo gave Bournemouth fans a farewell gift before his expected move to Manchester City, scoring in stoppage time to give his side a 3-2 victory at home against Tottenham Hotspur, his side’s first win in 12 league games.
“That was the type of stuff you write in movies and no man deserves it more than him,” Marcus Tavernier said of his soon-to-be former teammate.
Semenyo illustrated just why City are prepared to pay £65 million ($87.46 million) for his services with a curling shot past Guglielmo Vicario sparking wild celebrations.
City have won the title six times in the last eight seasons but their hopes of reclaiming it after being dethroned by Liverpool last season are beginning to look forlorn.
They produced a lacklustre attacking display against Brighton but Haaland’s penalty, after a foul by Diego Gomez on Jeremy Doku, looked like earning them a victory that would have put some pressure on leaders Arsenal.
But Brighton struck back as Mitoma guided in an equalizer from the edge of the penalty area.
Haaland should have won it for City late on, but fired a shot straight at Brighton keeper Bart Verbruggen.
To make matters worse for City, Guardiola said Savinho will be out for two months with an injury, adding to an absentee list that also includes defenders Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and John Stones.
