Chelsea star agrees with FIFA president Gianni Infantino over Club World Cup controversy

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has claimed that the players “love” the revamped Club World Cup and Chelsea star Pedro Neto seems to agree with that assessment

Chelsea star Pedro Neto says he is “thankful” to be playing at the revamped Club World Cup instead of enjoying an extended break ahead of the new season. 32 teams are currently competing at the tournament, which has come in for huge criticism due to concerns over player burnout.

Manchester City star Rodri has warned that players could go on strike over the increasing demands when it comes to schedules, while England captain Harry Kane believes player concerns are being ignored by the football’s authorities.

Players’ union FIFPRO recently outlined a new 12-point plan that calls for major changes to protect footballers, including a minimum of four weeks’ rest between seasons. In response to some of the criticism, FIFA president Gianni Infantino insisted the players “love” the event.

“So, maybe some criticise it a little bit, but it’s something new,” Infantino said. “It’s something special. It’s a real World Cup with the best teams and the best players. It was about time that somebody invented a World Cup for club teams.

“Since 100 years, we know which is the best country in the world, but, until today, we do not really know which is the best team in the world. So, we thought it might not be a bad idea to create a World Cup for teams to decide.

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“Well, I think the players who play, they are loving it. Harry Kane gave an interview saying, ‘it’s a fantastic competition. It’s beautiful’. They (players) love it. Those who are not there, of course, they would love to be there.”

And Neto seems to agree with Infantino, insisting that “a lot of players that would love to be in my place”. When asked if he would rather be on the beach instead of at the Club World Cup, Neto replied: “We have to be thankful.

“We are here playing this tournament. I’m 100 percent sure. We have to enjoy it. There would be a lot of players that would love to be in my place, We are always confident. We are Chelsea, we play to win and we have an unbelievable team.”

Neto was speaking after Chelsea lost 3-1 to Flamengo in their second group game on Friday and the former Wolves winger believes the Blues simply lacked the same “desire” as their Brazilian rivals.

“What went wrong was the second half, to be honest in the first half maybe they had more control of the ball but we could create the chances more than them,” he added. “And when we went to the second half we tried to press a little bit higher.

“We started well in the second half but what made the difference was a little bit the desire and they had more desire than us to win the game. And after the red card as well the game was I think finished.”

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