Jurgen Klopp has not been shy in revealing his disdain at the scheduling of Liverpool’s trip to Newcastle at the end of the month, and he has Eddie Howe’s sympathy.
Liverpool have a relentless schedule as they continue to fight on multiple fronts, but it is the timing of their league visit to Newcastle between their Champions League semi-final that has Klopp hot under the collar.
The trip to the northeast has been scheduled on BT Sport for the early Saturday 12.30pm kickoff, less than three days after Villarreal’s visit and three days before the Reds travel to Spain.
The club have asked for the fixture to be pushed back to a 7.45pm start to accommodate their recovery period, with Klopp saying: “I would say common sense will tell you that it’s probably the right thing to do, to move the game slightly backwards.”
No response has yet been received and Howe can understand the position Liverpool are in as they seek a change, but the issue is not one that is felt by the Magpies.
“It’s a very difficult situation. They’ve been very successful this year and ended up playing a lot of games, so I understand it from their viewpoint,” Howe told reporters.
“I’d probably have the same opinion if I was them. For us, we’ve been in their position many times over the years when you look at it and think ‘how’s this game been moved to this time or day’.
“We have very little say in the fixtures and when they come and how they sit. You just have to react and deal with it.
“I have every sympathy with Liverpool but they’re winning lots of games and in lots of competitions so naturally, it’s going to be that way.
“That’s not for me to say [it’s unfair]. We get told when to play and we turn up and do our best.
“It’s not up to us to decide when games are played. We ended up playing four away games in very quick succession recently which was far from ideal for us, but we had to bite the bullet and get on with it.
“We don’t decide the fixtures but I do have every sympathy with them.”
As of the current schedule, only 62 hours separate the final whistle at Anfield against Villarreal from the first whistle at Newcastle.
The hosts, meanwhile, will head into the match on April 30 off the back of a one-week break following three games in six days.
