The Club World Cup continues to divide opinion, that’s putting it mildly.

The United States-based tournament hascertainly caused plenty of ruptures in the world of soccer, not least for its unnatural fit in the calendar.

Manchester City midfielder Rodri last year threatened strike action against the congested schedule, while French players' union the UNFP has criticized the Club World Cup, claiming Infantino is "flouting the physical and mental health of players for a few more dollars."

Jurgen Klopp is in agreement, and at the weekend claimed the competition is "the worst idea ever implemented in football," citing fears over player welfare.

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“We constantly expect the players to go into every game as if it were their last.

Klopp has expressed his concerns about the Club World Cup

“We have to make sure they have breaks, because if they don't get them, they won't be able to deliver top performances - and if they can't achieve that anymore, the entire product loses value.”

It resulted in a rather flawed defense of the FIFA competition from Sky Sports reporter Kaveh Solhekol over the weekend.

"If you don't like it, don't watch it," the former Times journalist told Klopp, and repeatedly referenced the lavish sums on offer to those available for the clubs involved.

“Jurgen Klopp is now a very senior figure at Red Bull

I think RB Salzburg probably ended up making £20m-30m-40m from turning up and playing here in the group stages,” Solhekol said, while refencing how clubs not competing will otherwise spend pre-season playing friendlies overseas.

While the last point does have some merits, to compare, for instance, Liverpool’s two-match pre-season tour of Asia, where it will play non-competitive games, doesn’t quite equate to a draining seven-match run in a tournament.

It's also an argument that totally overlooks Klopp's legitimate concerns over player welfare, while the money-generating capacity of FIFA's expanded Club World Cup could have the unintended consequence of skewing the financial landscape of other leagues around the globe.

That Pep Guardiola has publicly agreed with his old adversary says everything

To view the Club World Cup as a money-making exercise that will benefit those participating misses Klopp's point entirely.


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