England manager Gareth Southgate believes the Premier League started too early this season on the back of the World Cup in Russia.
Questions have been asked as to whether a number of players, particularly Harry Kane, who went deep into the tournament are now struggling with tiredness having not been afforded a proper rest.
Tottenham star Kane has been constantly knocking back suggestions that he is fatigued, while Southgate lost five members of his current squad through injury.
The English top flight returned on August 10, a week before LaLiga and with Serie A starting eight days later and the Bundesliga a full fortnight on.
Speaking ahead of England’s Nations League meeting with Spain in Seville, Southgate said the Premier League is suffering as a result of returning just 26 days after the World Cup final.
“I think it’s psychological freshness, rather than physical. Everyone adapts their training load appropriately,” he said when asked if he felt players had started the season more slowly than in other years.
“But I think when you see the league, there are probably a lot of teams that haven’t started yet at the level when they are at their maximum.
“There have been lots of injuries across our league, I don’t know about the rest of Europe.
“It is a balance. I don’t really understand why our league started so early, but they did, so it is a really difficult situation for the clubs.
“Some of the clubs couldn’t field a team without… look at Tottenham, who had so many players in the semi-finals of the World Cup they had to put their players straight into matches on the back of very little pre-season, so it was an impossible situation for the coaches really.”
Kane has not scored in his last six England games, again drawing a blank in Friday’s 0-0 Nations League draw with Croatia.
The 25-year-old was sporting heavy strapping on his ankle ahead of England’s training session at Ciudad Deportiva Luis del Sol – the training base of LaLiga side Real Betis – on the eve of the match.
But Southgate played down any injury concerns surrounding the World Cup golden boot winner.