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Why English football does NOT need a winter break:

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As we approach the final month of the year, football fans up and down the country can look forward to the increase in games over the Christmas period which has been cited in the past as being a crucial time in the season for revealing strengths and weaknesses across the leagues.

It is a time when strength in squad depth can really assist teams, because of the quick turn around of games, getting through this schedule is seen as a big milestone. If your club comes out after the New Year relatively unscathed with the majority of your squad in tact, then goals can be realistically set for the remainder of the season.

But there are those who still believe that the festive period is not good for the English game. These calls have come from numerous sources over the years, such as managers, pundits and journalists.

Other European leagues undertake a winter break and it does not seem to be an issue; it would also stop what is for some an over-saturation of football on television, that takes away some of the appeal of watching a live game. There are undoubtedly fans who would agree with the idea of a winter break. For others, it would help to address the problem of players complaining of tiredness.

Whatever the reason may be, it still has its charm and is something that should be kept. Firstly, it is highly unlikely that television broadcasters that pour money into football would be happy to not have anything live to show over a very busy period where people generally tend to congregate.

It may not be in line with European counterparts, but the idea that it would stop tiredness seems to fail to consider that if those games weren’t played over Christmas they would have to be played at another point during the season, possibly nearer the end where tiredness could become more of a decisive factor in a game.

There usually tends to be a jovial atmosphere all around when going to football around Christmas; the overall feeling of celebration mixed with watching your team can create a memorable experience at a time when there is generally more time off to get to matches so fans can get their fix of football.

Of course this is going to be different for the players, the ones that have to travel and continue to train. A counter argument to this would be that they get time off over the summer, which is true but of course brings up its own points of contention.

So what this debate seems to come down to is what the club (players, manager etc) want against what the fans want.

No-one knows what is going to happen in the future, and so fans should make the most of Christmas games whilst they can, just in case. But it would be nice to think that on this particular issue, the fans would win out.

Daniel Smith – @dmsmith1987

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