Club World Cup is football’s ‘worst idea ever’ – Klopp

Jurgen Klopp often complained about players' workload and fixture congestion during his time as Liverpool boss

Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes the Club World Cup is "the worst idea ever implemented in football" because of "serious fears" over player welfare.

The German is now Red Bull's head of global soccer and one of their teams, Red Bull Salzburg, qualified for this summer's tournament in the United States.

Klopp has often complained about players' workload and fixture congestion, and days before the Club World Cup, global players' unionFifpro released a reportsaying players should be allowed at least a four-week off-season break.

This year's Club World Cup is the first to feature 32 teams and 48 games, and saw Salzburg knocked out in the group stage.

During an exclusive interview with German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, Klopp talked about the expanded format and player development.

"It's all about the game and not the surrounding events - and that's why the Club World Cup is the worst idea ever implemented in football in this regard," he said.

"People who have never had or do not have anything to do with day-to-day business anymore are coming up with something.

"There is insane money for participating, but it's also not for every club.

"Last year it was the Copa [America] and the European Championship, this year it's the Club World Cup, and next year the World Cup. That means no real recovery for the players involved, neither physically nor mentally."

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In September, a week prior to suffering an ACL injury, Manchester City midfielderRodri said players were close to going on strikebecause of the increase in games, while team-mate Manuel Akanji suggested he would have to retire aged 30 as a result of the lack of breaks in the calendar.

In October, Fifpro filed a legal complaint with the European Commission over what it said wasFifa's "abuse of dominance",specifically related to the Club World Cup, andFifpro representatives met with Fifaover the fixture calendar in January.

Klopp added: "I have serious fears, that players will suffer injuries they've never had before next season. If not next season, then it will happen at the World Cup or afterwards.

"We constantly expect the players to go into every game as if it were their last. We tell them that 70 or 75 times a year. But it can't go on like this.

"We have to make sure they have breaks, because if they don't get them, they won't be able to deliver top performances - and if they can't achieve that anymore, the entire product loses value."

Senior Fifa sources told BBC Sport earlier this monththe protection of player welfare has been at the core of decision-making, pointing to initiatives such as a fund for players, additional substitutes in competitions and permanent concussion substitutes.

Suggestions the competition has contributed to further congestion in the fixture calendar were firmly dismissed, with a source saying it was "not caused by the Club World Cup".

It was pointed out that a maximum of seven Club World Cup games will be played by two teams every four years, with the slot for the competition replacing the one previously used for the Fifa Confederations Cup.

Florian Wirtz surpassed Darwin Nunez (£85m deal in 2022) to become Liverpool's most expensive signing

Klopp ended his nine-year spell as Liverpool boss last summer before his successor, Arne Slot, won the Premier League title in his first season in charge.

The Reds have since spent big on recruitment, signing Germany midfielder Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen in aclub-record £116m deal.

"There's no question about it, that's an insane sum," said Klopp. "We all agree that we're talking about a great player here.

"I know I once said thatI'm out if we pay 100m euros for a player.,externalBut the world keeps changing. That is how the market is.

"My part of football will always remain the game itself, but if you want to play at the top level, you can't train all your players yourself. Sometimes you need to get hold [of players from] somewhere else."

Asked if Wirtz, 22, will establish himself at Anfield, Klopp added: "Yes, although of course I don't know exactly which position Arne has in mind for Florian.

"He's an outstanding player who can give any club something great. Whether he'll make the reigning English champions even better remains to be seen."

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Klopp began leading Red Bull's global football strategy in January, when he saidhe will not coach one of their teams.

The 58-year-old remains adamant he will not return to coaching, even on a temporary basis, such as when German club RB Leipzig sacked Marco Rose in March. Ole Werner was named his successor last week.

"My gut feeling tells me: 'No'," said Klopp. "I loved my job, but I don't miss anything.

"It's about my role at Red Bull, where I'm not the sword of Damocles hanging over our coaches, true to the motto: I'll tell you how it's done, and if you don't understand, I'll do it myself.

"That will never happen. Red Bull didn't bring me in as a potential coach. I'm supposed to pass on the experience I've gained as a head coach and manager, and help younger colleagues develop."

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