Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has concocted a controversial plan thar would have had Jurgen Klopp up in arms.
Klopp departed Anfield at the close of the 2023-34 campaign, passing on his responsibilities to successor Arne Slot.
Slot has been given the title ‘head coach’ at Liverpool in contrast to Klopp, who was officially the club’s ‘manager’.
That subtle semantic difference says a lot about Klopp’s role at Liverpool, which was all-encompassing and a departure from the trend to separate a club’s sporting and behind-the-scenes dimensions.
One area that the German was particularly vocal about was player welfare, especially in the context of a relentless fixture schedule.
With that in mind, Klopp would surely have Werner’s idea which, although potentially lucrative, would put even greater physical strain on Liverpool players.
Tom Werner wants Liverpool games played overseas
As relayed by The Athletic, Werner has outlined a “crazy idea” of his to take competitive matches abroad to put the Premier League in the shop window and further enhance its global appeal.
“I even have the sort of crazy idea that there would be a day where we play one game in Tokyo, one game a few hours later in Los Angeles, one game a few hours later in Rio, one game a few hours later in Riyadh and make it sort of a day where football, where the Premier League, is celebrated,” the FSG chief said.
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£17m prize money isn’t worth it, says Ancelotti
The idea of a ’39th game’ is nothing new. The bigger clubs and investors have wanted to bring Premier League football to the US and further for years.
But the concept of competitive matches abroad is particularly in the spotlight at present due to the drama surrounding the expanded Club World Cup and remarks by Premier League chief Richard Masters.
Masters has said that the “door is ajar” for Premier League games to be played abroad, while top English clubs are also believed to be frustrated at league’s reticence to let them play in the new Club World Cup.
That competition, which will see 32 teams enter from 2025, has been slammed by the likes of Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti, who like Klopp has raised issues of player welfare.
The Italian, who managed across Stanley Park at Everton, has said that the £17m in prize money on offer for competing in the tournament is simply not enough to justify the burden on players.
As quoted by BBC Sport, the Italian said: *“A single Real Madrid match is worth 20 million \[euros\] and FIFA wants to give us that amount for the whole cup\. Negative\. Like us, other clubs will refuse the invitation\.”*
Real Madrid have since insisted they will in fact enter the tournament, contrary to their five-time Champions League-winning manager’s comments.