Jurgen Klopp has pleaded with Premier League chiefs to introduce five substitutions “for the good of the game.”
The Liverpool boss believes the standard of football has now reached “insane levels”, meaning the fixture list successful sides face is now truly “horrible”.
And he argued that current levels - which makes it the best sporting product in the world - can only be maintained if English clubs relent and allow more subs during games.
The Reds face Inter Milan on Tuesday in a crazy run of six matches in 16 days, and he said: “If you can’t make changes – we played final Sunday, then Wednesday, then Saturday and now Tuesday - that’s actually a horrible schedule.
“We have pushed each other to insane levels the last few years. It’s great for everyone in football you can have competition like this, I think that’s really good for football.
“That’s why we need five subs. I don’t know why you are laughing, it’s not funny. We need five subs.”
Klopp believes the rivalry between his side and Manchester City in particular, and the Premier League competition in general, makes it the best in the world.
But to maintain the standard which makes it the most watched league in the world - and the most lucrative - he is adamant the authorities must follow other competitions to protect players, and allow them to perform at their highest levels.
“We have three competitions where we have five subs and one we don’t have. I don’t understand why it takes that long to understand it.
“The Premier League has to save top class players as well. It cannot be that we do it because some clubs think it is an advantage for the bigger clubs. It’s not about an advantage, it’s about the game.
“You keep the players in a better place and you get much less injuries definitely over the year, we will see that if we finally introduce it. With the schedule we have, it’s really important to be able to make changes.”
