Brendan Rodgers
For Brendan Rodgers, Man City have enough talent in their squad that his defenders will need to be at the top of their game no matter who leads the line for the champions. But he also called on authorities to come up with a solution to stop clubs and players being put in the same situation in a month’s time, when there is another round of internationals.
Brendan Rodgers said “For us, we’re just preparing to play against a top-quality team, whether it’s Jesus or Riyad Mahrez or Raheem Sterling, it’s going to be a top player. They’ve got an incredible squad full of talent and winners, so whichever team Manchester City play, we’ll be prepared for a top team. All players just want to play football, they want to play for their countries, then they want to come back and play for their clubs and supporters. It’s beyond the players. This is for governments and hierarchies to make the decisions. It’s for authorities to find solutions for when players can travel.”
Meanwhile, greater international football could be on the cards in the future with talk of a biennial World Cup increasing in volume. Rodgers said those in charge of the game need to be wary of reducing its quality by pushing the players too hard.
Brendan Rodgers said “What is important is that we think of the players. It’s okay to have all these competitions, but we have to ensure it’s about the quality of football, because the guys who have to play the games, it’s arguable that they can play too much. It’s about the quality of the tournament. I enjoy having the Euros every couple of years in between and then going to the World Cup every four years. That, for me, fits well. Any decision has to take in the number of games the players are playing because we don’t want to see the quality dip. The last thing you want is to see players who have played 60 games being tired going into tournament football because then the spectacle, the quality and the risk of injury will be affected.”
Leicester City know they will be taking on a top side even as this weekend’s opponents Manchester City await a definitive answer on the eligibility of their Brazilian duo. As things stand, City will face a Man City side without first-choice goalkeeper Ederson or lead striker Gabriel Jesus after the Brazilian FA called for Fifa to invoke a five-day ban on the players, who had been called up but were then barred from travelling by the Premier League as part of a decision on internationals due to visit red-list countries. However, talks are ongoing behind the scenes as Man City and the other clubs affected – Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Leeds – try to negotiate an agreement with the authorities so that they can feature this weekend.
