Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini blames the congested fixture for affecting England's chances on the international stage. As the Italian prepares to face Fulham on Sunday just three days after the Europa League win over Aris Salonika, Mancini insists he has never encountered such fixture congestion before.
He said: "In my life I have never seen that a team arrives in February and March and has to play every two days.
"This is a big problem, not only for us but for all the (English) teams. Something should change because this is impossible for all English players.
"At every World Cup and European Championships, there is a problem for England because all their players are tired.
"We should have more respect for them. They are not machines."
Mancini also has an injury hit squad to contend with.
He added: "At the moment, it is difficult to get performances from my team every three days because I only have 15 players.
"Usually when I have 18 or 19, I can change six or seven players and keep them all fresh.
"At this moment, it is impossible because I can only change three or four.
"I don't know if these matches will eventually catch up with us.
"We can only use the gaps in between to recover, which we will have to do for every game until we play against Chelsea on March 20."
