The insanity of a mid-winter break

Talk of a mid-winter break in the English Premier League has reared its head again.

Sir Alex Ferguson mentioned it after Manchester United were crushed by Barcelona; England players have talked about it after their embarrassing draw against Switzerland last week; Fabio Capello said England players looked tired in that game.

But a mid-winter break simply would not work.

First of all - when IS mid-winter? November suffered snow in 2010; but so also did February 2010. So when do you break? December?

Secondly, the game is all about money and attendances at games on Boxing Day and New Year's Day are always at a peak. This might not matter to clubs whose stadiums are full every week, but it will certainly matter to the Wigans and Fulhams of this world.

Thirdly, it is not the breaks that matter, but the number of games. There are 38 Premier League games, as many as 19 Champions League games, plus possibly 11 cup games. So that's 60+ games in a season of around 41 weeks. That's not mentioning the half-dozen pre-season games, of course. What are we suggesting with a mid-winter break? That we cram those 60+ games into two or three fewer weeks?

Fourthly, the truth is that there will be no mid-winter break for players. If there is a break in the Premier League, then the clubs will whisk their players off to Thailand, Japan, USA for a lucrative mini-tour to ensure that revenue is boosted. Add three more games to the schedule.

Talk of a mid-winter break is misguided foolishness. Forget it now.