"People say he's a millionaire, yeah he is, but it doesn't give you an extra lung or an extra leg, and come to a stage where you know, 'I want to see Cole Palmer on the pitch because he's the one who makes me dream'. And the reality is that the fans pay right now 100 per cent of the ticket and a lot of time they get 70 per cent if they're lucky of the show or 60 because players start regulating themselves."
"The Premier League is the best product in terms of football, they make north of £4billion for 38 games. So surely there's an element of valuing the scarcity. Christmas is nice because it's not every Tuesday and I think we need to discover that because we thought in football that more is more and sometimes less is more."
"When I look at the last international window and I see (Jude) Bellingham out, Lamine Yamal out on the one side, Lucy Bronze out, is this the football we want to see? Because frankly people didn't want to spend money just to watch someone like me play."
The PFA executive expresses concern about the demanding schedule affecting top players across Europe, including Cole Palmer at Chelsea. Despite high wages, players cannot perform at full capacity due to injury and fatigue from overcrowded fixture lists. Fans pay full ticket prices but often receive diminished performances as players self-regulate to manage workload. The Premier League generates over £4 billion from 38 games, suggesting room to reduce fixture frequency. The executive argues that scarcity creates value, comparing football's approach unfavorably to how Christmas maintains appeal through rarity. Recent international windows have sidelined key players like Jude Bellingham, Lamine Yamal, and Lucy Bronze, raising questions about whether current scheduling serves the sport's interests.
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