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Creating schedules every year results in disappointed teams, which complain about unfavorable schedules and emphasize that other clubs have better conditions to rebuild and achieve good results. This time, the "Manchester United" team did not miss the opportunity to speak out, having conducted a survey after which they published their dissatisfaction with their schedule on their website.
We present the statement of the "Manchester United" club.
The most wonderful time of the year is beginning, which football fans can particularly enjoy, however, it puts additional pressure on "Premier" league players.
All 20 "Premier" league clubs will face an intense match marathon, but our research shows that the "Manchester United" club had the toughest schedule of all leading league teams.
During the holiday period, Jose Mourinho's team will have only six days of rest, while the trio from London: "Arsenal," "Tottenham Hotspur," and "West Ham United" will have three more days. This happened because the "Premier" league decided to move the "gunners'" match against "Liverpool" one day earlier, while the "Spurs" and "West Ham" derby was postponed by one day and will take place on January 4.
"Chelsea" matches are nicely spread out and they will have eight days of rest, while "Liverpool" and "Manchester City" will rest for seven days. The current champions will have three days between their second and third matches, while "United" and 14 other "Premier" league clubs cannot boast about that. Moreover, on January 3, they won't have to travel far, as they have a match with the "Arsenal" club.
"United" coach has already revealed that Antonio Valencia suffered an injury this week due to excessive fatigue, and therefore the health of other players should be a concern. It is believed that additional matches during this holiday period were scheduled because this summer the planet championships will take place and the players should have more time to prepare for them.
From December 23 to January 1, "United" and "Leicester City" will play four matches each, after the match at the "King Power" stadium was moved to Saturday. This trip will be the longest for the "Red Devils" in these days, but in total this team will have to travel 288 miles. For comparison, one of "United's" opponents, the "Burnley" club, will have to cover just 160 miles.
During this period, a total of 12 points will be fought for, and just as many or even more matches will be played in these days than in October and November, when respectively three and four matches were played. In December, "United" faced a much tougher challenge, as they will have to play a total of nine matches in all competitions, and from the end of the match with "Southampton" on December 30 to the beginning of the match against "Everton" in away on January 1, less than 48 hours will have passed.
In January, a similar schedule could be expected only if "United" had progressed to the next round of the league cup, as matches for the league cup and FA cup would have been added to the league matches. Although such a tight schedule in January could only be guaranteed by success in the tournaments, it is obvious why J. Mourinho is forced to rotate his players as much as possible so that more tired and injured players do not appear in the ranks of "United".
