Rio Ferdinand and Peter Crouch have disagreed on the five subs Premier League rule for 2022/23, while Chelsea's Thomas Tuchel insists he is hugely in favour of the rule.
The five substitutes rule was one that was introduced in the return to action during Covid-19 to help out all squads who were suffering from coronavirus outbreaks in a tightly-packed schedule. However, after the main wave of Covid was over, most leagues in Europe kept that rule in place and the top flight of English football was one of the only ones not to follow suit.
But that has now changed with the league reintroducing the rule, one that is set to benefit the bigger teams in the division who possess larger strength in depth in their squads. Something that Crouch doesn't believe will be fair for the likes of Fulham, Bournemouth and others when they come up against a team like Chelsea.
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"It’s a difficult season but it does suit a bigger club, I think it’ll add to the divide - not so much today because Liverpool have injuries to their second string," the ex-Premier League striker said in the pre-match build-up of Fulham's opening day fixture against Jurgen Klopp's side on BT Sport.
"That is a good plus point to it. Let’s say you’re a midtable side or fighting at the bottom of the league and you see what City have on the bench or Liverpool and they’re bringing them on 75, 80 minutes and you’ve worked so hard to get a result and three Galacticos come on, it is going to be very difficult."
On the contrary, Ferdinand views the reintroduction in a more positive light. He replied: "I think it’s great, I’m excited for it. For the bigger and smaller teams, if you’re a younger player you’re buzzing because there’s a bigger chance you’ll get on the pitch. It’s a great opportunity to showcase talent but also preserving energy of the so-called bigger players."
Despite downplaying Tuchel's side ahead of their Premier League kick-off in 2022/23 against Everton this weekend, one thing that Ferdinand and the Chelsea boss can see eye to eye on is their positive views on the five subs rule.
The German said in his pre-match press conference this week: "I like it a lot. We were the only league that did not use it so I felt it was a disadvantage in Champions League matches when opponents came from their leagues and had five changes available and we didn’t. I think we can now use this option and it gives you the possibility to use more players, have more impact tactically and physically in the game.
"It gives, of course, the players more chance for game time which is key also. It’s a huge factor in being satisfied and bringing your constant good energy, even if you maybe don’t start so often. We can reward players for their performance in training or in games."
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