ANGRY ‘Big Six’ clubs forced a vote over subs they knew they would LOSE — to lay the ground rules for future battles.
Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham, Liverpool and the Manchester giants were frustrated last month when they were outvoted as clubs agreed to revert to three subs for the new season.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp again urged clubs to think again and keep five subsCredit: Getty – Pool
Eleven Premier League clubs voted against the plan, with nine backing the retention of two extra subsCredit: Rex Features
And they tasted defeat again yesterday as their Premier League rivals ignored the decision by Germany’s top flight to stick with five replacements.
The Big Six wanted to send a message to their opponents that the decision would not be forgotten.
They also wanted to send out a warning signal to Premier League chiefs.
In last month’s vote, Chelsea’s proposal to take up the option from Fifa to extend the “temporary” change for another year was defeated by 11 clubs to nine.
KLOPP REPEATS PLEA
Aston Villa led the backlash and opposition.
Despite the vote having only been held four weeks ago, the Big Six demanded it go back on the agenda for yesterday’s meeting of the 20 clubs.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp had repeated his plea for a change of heart after the Community Shield.
Brighton also argued that the smaller clubs would benefit from being able to rotate players more in a shortened season.
Yet even though it soon became clear no opinions had changed, the Big Six demanded a full debate and vote.
And the outcome was exactly the same, with none of the teams changing sides.
One top club chief said: “It was very important for us to show this was a big issue.
“We didn’t expect the other clubs to have a change of heart but we did hope they might listen to reason. You can take it for granted we will not forget.”
While league chiefs hinted at their support for the Big Six position, their stance was described as “tepid”.
Another club executive said: “We were expecting more from the league. We feel let down.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
