The They can't play every game myth

[BLUEMATT23]

Seriously when did this crap all start?.
I have heard tales from my dad & elder blues of the players sweating blood & tears & straining every sinew for us & playing in every competition back in our heyday.
Our old managers did not cherry pick the players for competitions & put out the same side more or less for every competition. They didn't complain.

Yes a lot's changed since when we were last successful but I can't get my head around the fact that players are paid an extorinate amount of money & yet it's asking them too much for them to play against West Brom on a Wednesday, have two days rest & then play Chelsea on a Saturday.
Are you telling me that Bell, Lee & Summerbee could not have done this?.
I know it's not us & other teams do it, but I think it's more in their (or the managers) mind than beyond their physical capabilities.

Theirs something seriously wrong with the world when fans are travelling to West Brom on a shit night, forking out £100- plus, booking time off work yet CANNOT watch their first team players, paid in excess of £100,00 a week as it's deemed impossible. It's pathetic

 

[woz09]

THIS

 

[lancs blue]

I think you're looking from the wrong angle, it's not so much about the players not being able to handle 3 games a week, it's about picking up injuries. In the 60s and 70s senior squads were much smaller, maybe only 15 or 16 genuine first teamers AND there were strict rules about playing the strongest available line-up so players were often forced to play through niggling injuries - whether you think that's a good thing or not.

 

[charliebigspuds]

The game is lot lot faster now than it was back then so the players need to be at peak fitness to be able to perform week in week out, plus players were given pain killing injections for injuries like it didn't matter, just to get them through games, that's why you see a lot of old pro's that can barely walk nowadays.

 

[Prophet of Doom]

You cant compare to the 70's - cause teams were not playing a possible 17 games in Europe.

If we progressed in the Europa and Carling Cup - it would equate to 2 games a week for almost the whole season - and then most playing again for International teams.

Its impossible.

 

[DD]

It's not the same. We could end up playing 16 European games this year. The maximum then would be 9. Not that we were in it that much to count.

The physical intensity of the game is significantly higher now too. Watch some 60s football and you will see that is virtually played at walking pace half the time.

 

[lancs blue]

It's not the same. We could end up playing 16 European games this year. The maximum then would be 9. Not that we were in it that much to count.

The physical intensity of the game is significantly higher now too. Watch some 60s football and you will see that is virtually played at walking pace half the time.

The game was also commonly played on cloying muddy surfaces which required considerable stamina to get through 90 mins. I agree the game is much faster and more intense but a lot of that is down to improved pitches at the top levels of the game.

 

[Sepehr]

Its not that they physically can't play. Its that playing 3 games in one week (two against European powers) will result in fatigue. Best case scenario they are physically and mentally exhausted, wouldn’t be able to perform to their best and make mistakes that cost games. For the other scenario, see Torres.

Simply you can’t play in Europa, Carling and league with 1/3 of your senior squad injured. You have to pick your competition and minimize the risk of injuries and fatigue by utilizing your youth in the other comps.

 

[Damocles]

Argh.

As much as I hate to say it, this thread demonstrates a lack of knowledge about football. That isn't in a bitchy way either, it's in a way that these 3 game a weekers don't currently understand the science of football.

Sports science is a very precise discipline. There are performance curves and regimes set out for each player, and fitness curves to be set out. Some like their teams fittest at the start of the season like Hughes. Some, like Ferguson, prefer their fitness and performance to peak in December or January. These are very purposeful measurements taken.

As every athlete knows, a body needs rest in addition to exercise to attain real fitness. Playing at top level, balls to the wall performance three times a week just doesn't work. The human body isn't built to do this.

 

[oakiecokie]

Argh.

As much as I hate to say it, this thread demonstrates a lack of knowledge about football. That isn't in a bitchy way either, it's in a way that these 3 game a weekers don't currently understand the science of football.

Sports science is a very precise discipline. There are performance curves and regimes set out for each player, and fitness curves to be set out. Some like their teams fittest at the start of the season like Hughes. Some, like Ferguson, prefer their fitness and performance to peak in December or January. These are very purposeful measurements taken.

As every athlete knows, a body needs rest in addition to exercise to attain real fitness. Playing at top level, balls to the wall performance three times a week just doesn't work. The human body isn't built to do this.

Wish you`d explain this to my missus then !