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Manchester City forward Sergio Agüero suffered a leg muscle injury against West Ham on Saturday
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says the Premier League should allow five substitutes per game again due to increased muscle injuries this season.
Guardiola said there have been “47% more muscle injuries” this year compared to the same time last season.
Premier League clubs voted against continuing to allow five substitutions for the 2020-21 season in August.
The rule was introduced when the 2019-20 season was restarted after the lockdown in June to protect the well-being of the players.
When asked if the Premier League should again allow five substitutions instead of three, Guardiola said: “They should be 100%.”
City have been affected by the injuries of several players this season, including Sergio Agüero, Gabriel Jesus, Benjamin Mendy and Nathan Ake.
“It is not about a club,” Guardiola added.
“In the Premier League, players have 47% more muscle injuries than the previous season, due to the lack of preparation for most teams and the number of games.
“All leagues – Germany, Spain, everywhere – allow five substitutions to protect players, not to protect a team.
“Hopefully they can reconsider and do what the rest of the world is doing because we have to adapt to the situation of the pandemic.”
Number of injuries per Premier League club Arsenal 5Liverpool7Aston Villa3Man City5Brighton6Man Utd5Burnley 5Newcastle5Chelsea2Sheffield United4Crystal Palace6Southampton 4Everton9Spurs2Fulham6West Brom3Leeds 5West Ham2Leicester6Wolves1uries.comSource: Premier
FIFA allowed the continuous use of five substitutes in competitions this season, but it is believed that many members of the Premier League felt that it was unfairly benefiting major clubs.
Other Premier League coaches backed Guardiola’s request to reverse the rule.
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said: “I don’t understand and I can’t believe the vote went against it because we have to take care of the players.
“I can see why the clubs voted against it, but if you take a step back and think about these footballers and their mental and physical health, the only sensible solution would have been to give us a chance to get some more rest.”
Chelsea manager Frank Lampard said “the ball fell firmly” when clubs voted against having five substitutes.
“I don’t mean just my club, I mean all the players, who are asked to play day after day, putting themselves at risk of injury,” he said.
“We have a great team here, but the pressure is on the players and it could certainly have a big effect this year more than any other year.”
Newcastle boss Steve Bruce said soft tissue injuries were proving to be “a problem” this season.
“But we are not alone, there are other teams that are having a hard time,” he added.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said the tight match schedule leaves his team susceptible to injury.
Defensive problems for the defending champions increased this week after Fabinho, who had been replacing Virgil van Dijk as central defender, joined the Dutch international on the bench.
“October is like a regular December and November is a month like a regular December,” he said.
“So December is still December, which means we already have the intensity of the most hectic calendar.”
Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti said the number of injuries was “worrying”.
“After the international break we only have one game a week, so it’s not that bad for us,” he said.
“But for the European teams it is very busy and there are more injuries for that reason.”
Former Arsenal and England physio Gary Lewin told BBC Radio 5 Live that there are “several factors” behind the increase in injuries this season.
“In previous seasons, players would have gone through a normal preseason, a normal strength and conditioning program and then they had games on a regular basis, but not like they are now every two or three days,” he said.
“If you don’t fully recover from your previous game, fatigue will appear and muscle injuries will increase, because if you have tired muscles and you reload them, they will break.”
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Source: bbc.com
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