Chelsea and Italy midfielder Jorginho finds it ‘insane’ that the Premier League has chosen not to take advantage of the five substitutions rule, instead going back to three, and warns it will damage players and ultimately fans.
The change was introduced in 2020 after the lockdown, when the calendar was compressed and players were put under more stress than ever before.
However, while FIFA and UEFA look set to make it a permanent switch, and it remains five in most of Europe’s big leagues, the Premier League decided to go back to three substitutions per game.
“It’s very hard, because we don’t have time to rest. We need to play every three days and we have just three subs and that’s insane we don’t go for five,” Jorginho told beIN Sports.
“In my opinion it’s just too much. We should do something about it, because if we keep going like this, we’ll just have more players injured and maybe the quality of the game will go down, so that’s not the best for entertainment.
“Maybe the English should look at that.”
Remarkably, the Premier League and the Bundesliga had the option of continuing with five substitutions per match, but voted against it.