Mansfield Town boss David Flitcroft would back a winter break

Mansfield boss David Flitcroft believes a winter break is inevitable.

As Stags prepared for the first of four games in 11 days, he said: “I think it’s our English tradition. Boxing Day is always a brilliant day and a day you can get out there after Christmas Day and go and watch your team.

“I am a football fan and I have kids myself. But for me Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day are days of work.

“You don’t categorise it as Christmas Day or whatever, it’s just the day it falls on. It’s a day of preparation and the players know how intense I am with that attitude.”

But Flitcroft believes the growing clamour for a winter break will see it eventually happen.

“In the Premier League I can see a winter break coming in, maybe a January one,” he said.

“The German clubs have a four to six week break

“We need one if we want to talk about being successful and getting to World Cup finals and Champions League finals, every English fan wants that.

“We are Mansfield Town but I want to see every English club do well.

“I think it will come in and like VAR and goal line technology, they start in the Premier League, rightly so, and get cascaded down. It can only benefit football.

“The decision will have to benefit football if they are going to do it at all.”

Flitcroft said it would be a huge relief for top players who are almost playing the whole year.

He said: “You can’t just keep going like Harry Kane who’s probably got a couple of weeks off and has been right around the clock for the full year.

“Physically we are asking more demands on the pitch. A midfielder used to run 8km, now he’s probably doing 14km.

“Every different stat for a striker, defender or midfielder sees more mobility, velocity and intensity in the game – and it’s only going north.

“There had to be a trade-off somewhere to balance that.”

However, for now Flitcroft is happy to keep playing twice a week as his Mansfield side have found their consistency amid a hectic recent schedule.

He said: “It’s a busy period for the English clubs, but that’s what is special about our English leagues.

“We’ve benefited from playing Saturday-Tuesday and keeping that rhythm. It’s been a bonus for us.”