obviously we only care about outfield players because goalkeepers cannot possibly get tired with all that standing around. The worrying thing for fans of Manchester United’s rivals is that all their players are as fresh as daisies…no 2000-minute men there.
Minutes are for both club and country since the start of this season.
Liverpool (five)
Virgil van Dijk – 2396
Andy Robertson – 2332
Mohamed Salah – 2280
Sadio Mane – 2231
Georginio Wijnaldum – 2198
Obviously, neither the Netherlands nor Liverpool can drop the best player in the Premier League right now (or Van Dijk). This all looks a tad worrying for the Reds, though the good news is that none of those players went deep into the World Cup. Surely at least one of this lot has earned a rest at Wolves on Friday night, though obviously not Andy Robertson, for reasons of Alberto Moreno…
Manchester City (four)
Aymeric Laporte – 2068
Bernardo Silva – 2032
Fernandinho – 2029
Kyle Walker – 2020
Both Laporte and Fernandinho have reached those totals without international football, which is presumably one of the reasons why Pep Guardiola feels he can work them to the bone. Elsewhere, you would expect the return of Kevin De Bruyne to give Bernardo a rest, but the refusal of Danilo to stay fit is keeping Walker very busy indeed. What’s telling is that those totals are way below those of Liverpool’s band of workers. Do they have the advantage in a marathon?
Tottenham (two)
Harry Kane – 2379
Toby Alderweireld – 2331
Mauricio Pochettino’s decision to rest Harry Kane against Leicester last week gave him a rare but surely much-needed rest; he may do the same against Bournemouth on Boxing Day. Meanwhile, the decision to give Alderweireld a breather against Arsenal remains a riddle wrapped inside an enigma.
Chelsea (two)
N’Golo Kante – 2186
Jorginho – 2087
Even with both largely excused Europa League duty, they are far too important to their countries for them to be rested during international breaks. A reminder: Kante won the World Cup five months ago. And yet we expect he will be the last one to flag.
Arsenal (one)
Granit Xhaka – 2005
Surprised? We were. But then we discovered that Xhaka has played six 90-minute games for Switzerland since the World Cup. Just imagine if Arsenal were in the Champions League…
Burnley (one)
Ben Mee – 2010
He has played 22 games in the Premier League, Carabao Cup and Europa League, even though Sean Dyche gave him a couple of Thursday nights off. The good news is that Burnley centre-halves only move about three yards a game.
Watford (one)
Craig Cathcart – 2063
Well who else is going to play in central defence for Northern Ireland?
Fulham (one)
Aleksandar Mitrovic – 2104
Six goals in six games got Serbia promoted out of League C in the UEFA Nations League, but it might well have left Mitrovic a little bit on the knackered side. Can he have a rest? Can he balls.