John McGinn Aston Villa
Aston Villa captain John McGinn believes the busy football calendar is “getting out of hand”, warning the mental health of top level footballers must be protected amid Rodri’s claim that strike action could be close. McGinn made 66 appearances last season for club and country, up to Scotland’s last Euro 2024 game against Hungary. Villa went far in the Europa Conference League , playing 12 matches before being knocked out by Olympiacos in the semi-finals , and also played four domestic cup matches.
John McGinn said “When we were mid-table we weren’t playing many games and not playing for much at the end of the season, we were desperate to play games, desperate to be involved and be successful. I think that there is a part of it that’s getting a little out of hand, especially the Club World Cup next season. We are fortunate to be well-paid for doing a job we absolutely love. No-one is getting away from that but at times the mental side of things you need to switch off. There’s not a lot of time to rest, so they need to get the balance a bit better and there’s a lot of people pushing for that. We’re supporting that. We want to be successful and we love playing football but the balance has to be right. It’s more so the mental side. Football at this level brings amazing highs and tremendous lows. At the end of the season you just want to go, hands up, I’m done. But now the teams in that Club World Cup, they’re not going to have any time to do that. We all know the schedule is going to be very busy. But they are going to happen anyway, they are part of the game but yes, the schedule is very busy. Football is a demanding sport. It takes its toll on the body. We have to make the most of our recovery times. And we need to take care of our bodies but it’s true that sometimes it’s very hard but it’s what we love to do anyway.”
Emery brought the issue up in his programme notes before Villa faced Everton last weekend, calling on the football authorities to revise the hectic calendar.
Unai Emery said “I am very proud that a big majority of our team are called up for national team duties. It’s a signal of the high quality of our squad. My second feeling is not sweet. As a coach, I am very concerned about the number of matches that the international schedule is forcing the players to play.”
