Carvajal SLAMS schedule as Real Madrid star admits he would pay to play less

Real Madrid defender Dani Carvajal has admitted that players would be more than happy to reduce their salaries in order to play less games amid concerns over the ever-increasing football schedule.

The introduction of the new Champions League format and competitions such as the Nations League have ramped up the workload on footballers in Europe, and the continued oversight regarding player welfare has been heavily criticised online.

Gavi, Thibaut Courtois, Wesley Fofana and Eder Militao are among the top-level players to have suffered ACL injuries since the start of this summer, while clubs such as Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester United have all been forced to deal with injury crises this campaign.

Vinicius Junior and Eduardo Camavinga recently suffered major injuries during the November international break and are extremely unlikely to return to action for Real Madrid until 2024.

The issues with the increased number of games are clear to see and Carvajal, who plays with Vinicius Jr and Camavinga at club level, is not happy.

What has Carvajal said?

During a press conference ahead of Real Madrid’s Champions League clash against Napoli, Carvajal said: “For a top player playing at a top club, the calendar is very demanding. With the new Club World Cup, we won’t ever get a summer off.

“I agree with [Carlo Ancelotti] and other people who’ve said there are too many games. So many injuries isn’t a coincidence.

He continued: “The players are the ones who play, and it’s hard to reach an agreement between everyone. It’s complicated. But what’s a reality is there are lots of injuries, and I think a lot of them are due to the calendar.

“A lot of people say ‘why don’t [players] cut their salaries?’ We haven’t said we wouldn’t. If we had to earn less and play fewer games, it wouldn’t be a problem. You don’t see players at their best, and the games are dropping in quality, that’s the reality.”