Former England manager Glenn Hoddle has taken a swipe at the English Football League after the decision was made to postpone Liverpool's clash with Arsenal.
The two sides were scheduled to meet in the first leg of their League Cup semi-final on Thursday at the Emirates Stadium, but a Covid-19 outbreak in the Reds' camp triggered a request for the match to be put back.
Liverpool were without Jurgen Klopp on the sidelines on Sunday for the 2-2 draw with Chelsea in the Premier League, as he returned a positive test. Alisson, Joel Matip and Roberto Firmino missed the game for the same reason.
Assistant boss Pepijn Lijnders took charge of the team that day, but he also tested positive for Covid-19, meaning he would not have been able to be in the dugout.
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That prompted Liverpool to shut their training centre and confirmation came on Wednesday that the showdown in north London would not take place. Instead, the game will be played on January 20, with next week's match at Anfield the de facto first leg.
Speaking on TalkSport (h/t the Mirror ), Hoddle said the circumstances were not sufficient enough to warrant the action taken.
"The rules are there, the rules are there for everyone and I think that's what you've got to abide by," he said.
"The fact the manager won't be there, he wasn't there against Chelsea, they didn't play particularly well first half but were 2-0 up.
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"I think if the rules are there and if you haven't got the players to put out there then I think that's different, but I'm sure behind the scenes they'll be asked: 'Who is fit, who has got Covid, who is injured'? So I think the game's got to go ahead."
Liverpool are scheduled to next be in action on Sunday against Shrewsbury Town in the FA Cup, with Arsenal set to visit Anfield in semi-final on January 13.
