Premier League will SCRAP a round of fixtures between Boxing Day and New Year – amid chaotic festive feast of football that bosses HATE – in a bid to ease player burnout with the season restarting just a week after the World Cup final in Qatar
- Boxing Day fixtures this year take place just eight days after World Cup final
- There are fears the World Cup could cause extra burnout for players involved
- The Premier League is set to take action in Thursday’s released fixture lists
- There will not be the usual fixtures between Boxing Day and New Year
- Click here for all the latest World Cup 2022 news and updates
The Premier League will drop a round of matches between Boxing Day and New Year in a bid to ease player burnout
Fixture lists due out on Thursday will show the usual December 28 games have gone, following concerns of the impact of the World Cup in Qatar, which takes place in the middle of the season.
Instead, the festive calendar for the top flight will feature matches on Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve and January 2.
The Premier League will drop a round of matches between Boxing Day and New Year this year
The Qatar World Cup gets underway on November 21 before the final is played on December 18
The competition, interrupted for the World Cup, resumes on Boxing Day following the final in Doha on December 18.
Meanwhile, the EFL will also attempt to ease concerns, including three matchdays – December 26, 29 and January 1 on their calendar.
FA Cup matches will be across the weekend of January 7.
The moves come following pressure from the likes of Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and the Professional Footballers’ Association.
Gareth Southgate has also issued a warning over the impact of the World Cup on an already-packed schedule for those who play for clubs in Europe.
The festive calendar for the top flight will feature matches on Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve and January 2
It is a move aimed at attempting to prevent player burnout following the World Cup in Qatar
Following Tuesday night’s humiliating 4-0 home defeat against Hungary, players from England have only now been released for their summer breaks.
Some will have less than three weeks’ holiday before reporting back to their clubs for a season that beings earlier than usual, on August 6.
A hectic run of fixtures culminates in round 16, on November 12-13, before the break for the World Cup.
Prior to tired England’s mauling, Southgate disclosed that the FA had asked the Premier League to avoid scheduling any ‘Super Sunday’ clashes between big six clubs on the weekend before the interval.
The December 28 fixture is one some managers don’t like including Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp
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