The Champions League has kicked off in a new format, with Europe’s best clubs playing more games against each other starting this season. However, quantity doesn’t always mean quality. For years, players and coaches have been warning football authorities that the excessive number of matches is impacting health, and that it’s challenging to maintain top-level performances under such conditions. Everyone hears them, but few take action.However, things might change after Rodri’s recent statement, in which he mentions the possibility of a players’ strike. The Manchester City and Spain midfielder, ahead of the match against Inter, said he feels that a general strike among players is approaching.##NAJAVA_MECA_8342674##”If things continue like this, we’ll reach a point where we simply won’t have a choice. It’s something that concerns us. This is too much. Someone has to take care of us because, after all, we are the main figures in this sport, this business—call it what you will. It’s not all about money or marketing. It’s also about the quality of the spectacle,” the decorated Spaniard emphasized.Many have spoken out before him, but the word “strike” has rarely been used – barely at all, in fact. Yet, after Rodri’s statement, other players quickly voiced their agreement.Barcelona’s Jules Koundé reminds that players have been raising this issue for several years.”I agree with Rodri. Every season, there are more and more matches. We’ve been talking about this for three or four years, but no one listens to the players. There will come a time when we’ll have to strike to make the decision-makers take us seriously,” Koundé told Mundo Deportivo.”I think we are close to that, we may have no other option” 🚨Man City midfielder Rodri says players could go on strike due to the expanded calendar 🔵 pic.twitter.com/aeL4cBOdca— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) September 17, 2024 RB Leipzig’s Willi Orban shares a similar view.”Rodri is right; there are too many games. The Champions League has started, and we hope it’s a long journey, but we also hope it won’t end badly for our health. I love football, I love the Champions League, I love playing for Hungary in front of packed stadiums in Budapest. In short, I love my job and enjoy the privilege of turning my hobby into my career. But our job demands more and more physically, and there are natural limits to how much the body can endure.”Even though my heart wants more football, my body can’t handle it. We’ve reached a point where it could become dangerous for our health. The number of matches played by top footballers has reached its limit, and this also affects players’ mental health. That’s why I have to agree with Rodri. There are too many games, and we players need to be very cautious. It doesn’t matter how many millions someone earns in our sport; physical and mental limits are real, and health must come first,” Orban stated clearly.##NAJAVA_MECA_8342675##
