Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp asks for return of five sub rule as players are 'at the edge'

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has urged the Premier League to reconsider the rule of three substitutions and asked for five to be introduced as the players are 'at the edge' according to him. Currently, in the Premier League, there are only three regulation substitutions allowed, with an extra one in case of a head injury. However, earlier last year, just after the pandemic, the league allowed up to five substitutions per team in a match. The current rules state that for five substitutions to be allowed in a game, 14 of the 20 Premier League clubs need to vote in favour of it.

Burnley boss Sean Dyche has been against the five substitution rule because according to him, his team does not have the quality that the bigger teams in the league have. Klopp though has said that they need to put the competition aside as the players are on the edge. He also said that 14 votes to change the rule is just wrong as Burnley does not have as many players going out on international duty as compared to Manchester City and Liverpool.

The Liverpool boss told Sky Sports, "We have to put the competition aside and don't say that Man City has better subs than Burnley or whatever. Yes, that's probably true. But the problem is the intensity for a top-class footballer in England is definitely at the edge. You need 14 votes to change - there is something wrong. As an example, I'm not sure how many Burnley players play international football. When our players have three games, they have no game. You bring players back after Covid or after an injury, and because of the games we have to play they have to play immediately. Then they are out again because you cannot get them off after 60 minutes because you have to change other things."

Chelsea boss Tuchel also in support of five sub rule

Klopp is not alone in asking for an increased number of substitutions as Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel also believes that there should be five subs per match. "I would love to push for five substitutions because five substitutions were made to protect the players when coronavirus popped up and made life difficult," Tuchel told Sky Sports. However, it does seem a tough ask as a majority of the smaller teams in the Premier League would vote against a change in the rules for substitutions.

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