UK Edition
Tottenham's Danny Rose calls on English game to follow Dutch FA's lead and ease fixture pressure on Champions League clubs
Danny Rose has said he “could not believe it” when he heard that the Dutch league had postponed a full round of fixtures to allow Ajax extra time to prepare for their upcoming Champions League semi-final against Tottenham Hotspur.
The Spurs full-back has called on the football authorities in this country to provide similar assistance to English clubs when they reach the latter stages of European competition.
Rose’s comments echo those made by his manager, Mauricio Pochettino, earlier in the season. Pochettino said English teams in Europe “need help from the Premier League” ahead of the second leg of their last-16 tie against Borussia Dortmund.
Teams in France have received similar support this season, with Rennes’s match against Nimes postponed on the weekend before their Europa League meeting with Arsenal.
The Dutch FA said the decision to rearrange their domestic fixtures was made because “all of Dutch football benefits” from the success of Ajax in the Champions League.
“I could not believe it when I heard that’s what the Dutch were doing,” said Rose. “Of course when you get to this stage of the season, a little bit of fatigue starts to kick in and every little helps.
“It would be nice if the people in England took a similar stance and helped us out because ultimately it is not Tottenham against Ajax. We’re England. We want to bring the Champions League, obviously to Tottenham, but we want to bring it to England. And every little could help us along the way.”
Meanwhile, Rose has said it is “vital” to Spurs’s future that Christian Eriksen signs a new contract at the club. Eriksen’s contract expires at the end of next season and the midfielder has so far been reluctant to commit to a new deal.
“It’s obviously vital,” said Rose. “If you look over the five years that the manager has been here, Christian has probably played the most games and that says a lot. When Christian does not play, there are questions that we don’t look the same.
“He links everything up for us. It’s a pleasure to play with him. He’s such a hard worker. He’s so creative and I hope he does sign. The lads in the changing room trust the people upstairs to hopefully get him to do that. We will just have to wait and see and hope that he does sign.”
Eriksen scored a late winner against Brighton to seal another win in the absence of top scorer Harry Kane, who will miss the rest of the season through injury.
“We've had so many injuries this season,” said Rose. “Even myself, when Harry gets injured, you sort of fear the worst because we know how important he is but people like Sonny and Lucas [Moura] and Christian, who, season after season, they chip in with the goals and it's just what they've done this season and the previous seasons – it's just nothing short of brilliant.”