Liverpool Football Club News

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Rafa slams qualifying schedule

16 Oct 2008 - 15:27:05

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Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez has hit out the international schedule after losing star striker Fernando Torres for up to ten days due to a hamstring strain.

Torres was injured during Spain's 2-1 World Cup qualifying win over Belgium on Wednesday evening and Benitez was less than impressed by the blow to his side.

He told the club's official website: "I am very disappointed about this because it now looks like we will lose Fernando for three very important games.

"We have Wigan at home and Chelsea away in the league and Atletico Madrid away in the Champions League, so to lose any player is a big blow.

"The initial reports say Fernando is likely to be out for around ten days and that would mean he would miss these games.

"There are too many international games and the demands on the players are too much. Someone needs to analyse this situation because it is putting the players at risk of injury.

"Maybe the answer is for there to be a two-tier qualifying system because there are too many games in the qualifiers for the World Cup and the European Championships which are not competitive, but which still place great demands on the players.

"These fixtures are unnecessary and maybe it would be better if the weaker countries played one another and the best of them went to play the stronger countries in the qualifiers."