Everton boss Roberto Martinez has called on the Premier League to hand clubs a winter break, which he believes will see English sides do better in Europe.
The Toffees are England’s only remaining side in European competition after Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal all exited the Champions League in the past seven days.
Martinez and his side face a tricky trip to Ukraine on Thursday evening where they will try to preserve their 2-1 lead over Dynamo Kiev in the Europa League.
But, in the build up to the game, the Spanish boss has called for a winter break to be introduced, which he believes will aid English clubs in their quest to succeed in both the Champions League and the Europa League.
“Our British competition demands every game to be 100 percent,” ESPN quotes the former Wigan boss as saying “Teams that play in other leagues in Europe, they cruise through games and get through at 50 percent. It is unfair on British teams.
“A break in the winter would enable the players to regenerate and refresh. A key period in the season is February and March, so I think the biggest teams are a little bit unfairly treated.
“The answer is clear – you need to have a bigger squad at this level where you can make five or six changes to keep the team performing at the same level. I find playing Thursday and Sunday is tough. We should protect our teams a bit more, otherwise we shoot ourselves in the foot.”