Jurgen Klopp criticises the Premier League’s Christmas fixture list but acknowledges Liverpool’s luck

Jurgen Klopp has claimed that the Premier League’s packed Christmas programme is unfair, despite acknowledging that his Liverpool side have the best schedule they could have hoped for.

Klopp’s side, who kick off the top flight festivities on Friday with a visit to Wolves, have the most spread-out schedule of all the clubs in the division.

The leaders will play their four Christmas and New Year league matches over 14 days, hosting Newcastle and Arsenal before finishing with a trip to title rivals Manchester City on 3 January.

By contrast, Everton and Tottenham have to play their four games in just 10 days, beginning when they face each other at Goodison Park on Sunday.

Fixtures are staggered over the festive season to suit the demands of television, but Klopp thinks it would be far fairer if each team had the same gap between matches.

He has argued in favour of a Christmas schedule featuring just four days of action, each featuring a full round of games.

Klopp said: “This year, it’s not that we have the best schedule, but playing on 29 December and 3 January is the best you can get, I think. Everybody could play on 29 December and 3 January. Why not?

“Make these the two match days and then everything is fine. For us, we can all have a proper hangover – not us, but everyone else – and then you are fit again and can watch a football game again. So why not? But I am not here to decide that or think about it.”

Liverpool’s manager is at least relieved his team do not have to play twice in three days, as they have over the past two seasons at this time of year.

Last season, they defeated Leicester City at Anfield on 30 December and then won at Burnley on 1 January; the season before that, they beat Manchester City on 31 December and then drew at Sunderland on 2 January.

Klopp said: “I said it last year and I stick to it; if we have what we had last year, with 30 December and 1 January, it’s just crazy.

“You don’t know how to deal with that. You all expect that we deal with it, but we are not only responsible for results, we are responsible for the boys as well.

“I can ask for everything, because they are well paid and stuff like that, but then I cannot use them the week later. Stuff like that is such a challenge. Everybody’s watching you and saying: Let’s see how they do it.

“If you ask all Premier League managers and one says ‘it’s my favourite moment when we play 46 hours after the last game’, I would be really surprised. Let me say it like this. It’s all good so far but still it’s just an intense time.

“It’s nearly 2019, but before then, we have three games. That’s really a lot. And that’s all after what has been already a long season. We cannot complain about it so far, but I say it again, but having only 48 hours between games should not happen. Not after all the games you had.

“It’s not a tournament, where you have the preparation and then you play two games in two days and everything is good. It’s after 500 games that we play like this. It should not be like this.”