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Arsene Wenger believes advances in technology have aided player welfare enough to cope with football\u2019s growing calendar.<\/p>\n
From 2025, the Club World Cup will expand to a 32-team summer competition, with Chelsea and Manchester City among the teams already guaranteed a spot in the finals in the United States.<\/p>\n
It is the latest move that has seen more fixtures added to an already stacked calendar, with City boss Pep Guardiola the most recent manager to speak out against the lack of recovery time for players.<\/p>\n
Wenger, now FIFA\u2019s chief of global football development, was another to voice such concerns when he was in charge at Arsenal.<\/p>\n
Now though, his opinion has changed due to what he feels is a better understanding of how to take care of players between games \u2013 and even suggested VAR has played a part.<\/p>\n
\u201cI accept that the football calendar is a busy one,\u201d he said at a press conference in Saudi Arabia during the current Club World Cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut this is a competition that is going to take place every four years and of course the rest period during the competition and afterwards has to be respected.<\/p>\n
The welfare of the players in the last 20 years has increased dramatically<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see players receiving world awards, the likes of (Lionel) Messi, (Cristiano) Ronaldo, (Karim) Benzema, all over the age of 35. And it is not unusual to see international careers lasting over 20 years.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot so long ago, that was not possible. The welfare of the players in the last 20 years has increased dramatically when you look at injury prevention, recovery work, nutrition and advances in medical technology.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlso VAR has helped with the protection of players, as players know they cannot escape from making bad tackles that cause injury.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wenger believes the new-look Club World Cup will also help grow the sport outside of Europe.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Europe we are lucky, but it\u2019s important that we make football really global and this creates a chance for other clubs to progress,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will give more opportunities to more players all over the world to compete at the highest level.\u201d<\/p>\n