Chelsea forward Cole Palmer has been described as a ‘victim’ of a ‘sick’ system by Professional Footballers’ Association chief executive Maheta Molango, who believes the football calendar is demanding too much of players.
Palmer was one of five players to withdraw from Thomas Tuchel’s England squad ahead of the latest international window. The others were Marcus Rashford, Declan Rice, Kobbie Mainoo and Tino Livramento.
Speaking at the Fifpro performance summit in London, Molango said the withdrawals raised a fundamental question. ‘When England see five players who need to withdraw when the single most proud moment a player has is to be called up for the national team, you just ask yourself, what’s wrong about the industry?’ he said.
Molango singled out Palmer, saying the Chelsea forward would have played four consecutive summers in a row had he gone to the World Cup. ‘He’s missing because he’s a victim of the calendar and that’s something that needs to absolutely trigger the alarm bells,’ Molango said. He described the situation as ‘survival of the fittest’ and said the match calendar is unsustainable.
The PFA and global players’ union Fifpro have repeatedly warned about the impact of an increasingly congested calendar on player welfare. Molango criticised Tuchel’s stance after the England manager said Palmer ‘misses too many opportunities’ when the forward withdrew from the squad for ‘load management’. ‘They love to play for England. They love to play for their national team. But unfortunately your body puts a limit to it. You cannot cheat biology,’ Molango said.
Molango added that the problem extends beyond England, pointing to recent withdrawals from European teams including Germany’s Kai Havertz, Dutch striker Brian Brobbey and France captain Kylian Mbappé. ‘Is that really the football that we want?’ Molango asked. ‘Is it the football where the people who make us dream just cannot perform? For me it’s very worrying.’
He argued the system ‘ultimately revolves around obtaining votes and power consolidation’ and described it as ‘sick’ and ‘ill’. To address it, Molango wants a mandatory three-week summer break and a three-week ‘retraining’ period every summer. Premier League chief football officer Rebecca Caplehorn said she supported the idea in theory but said it is not feasible at present. ‘It’s something we’re really supportive of, conceptually, but the challenge is that it just doesn’t fit into the current calendar,’ Caplehorn said. ‘There’s always something that’s preventing us having that six-week gap that we want. Without regulatory change and change to the calendar, it’s not possible for us to deliver that.’