Ray Parlour is the latest to criticise Newcastle United's decision to schedule a post-season friendly in Australia just three days after the Premier League season ends.
As soon as league duties are completed after today's trip to Brentford, Eddie Howe and his squad will jet to the opposite side of the globe to take on English rivals Tottenham Hotspur in front of a 100,000 crowd at the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground. It is a popular decision with those who will get the chance to see the Magpies in the flesh, though closer to home the trip has been subject to scrutiny.
Kick-off is pencilled in for 10:45am UK time on Wednesday, therefore there will roughly be only a two-and-a-half day gap between the two clubs' domestic campaigns finishing and their friendly getting underway as part of a 21,000-mile round trip. With constant calls to reduce the fixture load on players culminating in the recent scrapping of FA Cup replays to the detriment of lower-league clubs from next season onwards, it is seen to not be doing that argument many favours.
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"It’s a nightmare for the players," Arsenal legend Parlour told talkSPORT. "I know you’re paid a lot of money and you have to do what the club want you to do. But the players will be going ‘why are we going to Australia?’ They’ll be moaning behind the scenes. They’ve just had a long, hard season then they have to go all the way to Australia.
"Don’t get me wrong, it’s great for the fans in Australia who don’t get to see the players in the flesh and the clubs themselves. They will fill the stadiums out and it will be a great atmosphere. But right at the end of the season when you’re going into a Euros, it’s not ideal if I’m being honest. They’re playing for money really."
The ex-midfielder's sentiment for the players echoes the message of Kieran Trippier earlier this week. "It’s not ideal because it’s a tournament year," the vice-captain said. "I understand why the club are doing it. I’ve done it at Tottenham and Madrid but from my own experience of it – in a tournament year it’s not ideal."
Trippier, along with a few other Newcastle teammates, will be hoping to be called upon by Gareth Southgate for this summer's European Championships which get underway on June 14. Before that, England have friendlies lined up, the first of those taking place at St. James' Park against Bosnia on June 3.
Bruno Guimaraes will also be taking part in the Copa America with Brazil over the summer, so the extended travel time will not be of aid to him either in preparation for a major international competition.
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are set to lock horns in a huge clash this month with each fighter attempting to etch their names in boxing history as the first undisputed heavyweight champion since 1999. The stakes couldn't be higher as the pair will go head to head for the prestigious WBC, WBA, WBO, and IBF titles.
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