Fifa are to carry out a study into player burn-out to discover how many matches a year a top flight professional can reasonably play.
But Dr Jiri Dvorak, Fifa?s chief medical officer, warned that they would need the support of professional clubs and the confederations.
”The more strain the more likely you will suffer minor injuries,” said Dvorak.
But he stressed the answer to how many matches a year is too many cannot be answered just by medicine. ”The question cannot be answered by scientific evidence alone. Medicine can only help to find the answer,” said Dvorak.
Last week German football legend Franz Beckenbauer blamed too many club matches in Europe for the shock exit of France and Argentina from the World Cup.
”Billions of viewers around the world are switching on television to watch the World Cup and what are they seeing ? tired stars,” said Beckenbauer.
”All the best players play in Europe and they have to play too many matches. Fifa has to do something. It has to react,” he urged.
Dvorak said he was studying injury reports here at the 2002 World Cup to see if the number of player injuries were up on France ’98 and USA ’94.
”I will be able to report after the third place play-off,” he said.
Dvorak disclosed that all of the 204 doping samples tested since the start of the tournament had been negative. He said one case was on the borderline but further lab tests cleared the player.
”The whole testing system is very open and very transparent. It is functioning well,” he said. Fifa have been criticised by refusing to let the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) send independent observers to watch the testing.
”We were a little disappointed not to be independent observers for the World Cup,” said Wada head Dick Pound.
”We think it would have added a certain credibility to the process.”
But Dvorak defended Fifa’s decision to bar Wada.
”You are casting doubt on the personal and professional integrity of the doctors if you ask for an independent observer,” he said. – Sapa-AFP