'Too many games' - Why Raphaël Varane has been forced to retire at 31

Raphaël Varane’s legendary career came to a sad end on Tuesday when he announced his retirement at the age of just 31 having suffered a serious knee injury 23 minutes into his Como debut last month.

There will be many tributes in the coming days for one of the best defenders of the last 20 years, but also further questions on the workload top level footballers are subjected to.

The former Real Madrid and Manchester United defender has been one of the biggest voices on the issue, claiming that “there are too many games, the schedule is overcrowded, and it’s at a dangerous level for players’ physical and mental well-being” and that it’s been ongoing for years.

He has a strong argument considering the European Championship expanded from 16 to 24 teams starting in 2016, the Champions League now has 36 teams rather than 32 in the “Swiss Model”, and the 2026 World Cup will be the first to feature 48 countries.

The biggest issue, which has led to FIFPRO submitting a legal claim against FIFA, appears to be the 32-team Club World Cup, which is set for its first iteration next summer, although that appears in doubt right now.

Manchester City star Rodri said “we are close to that” when asked if the players would take strike action last week, and that noise is only likely to grow with his season-ending knee injury.

With Varane now retired, could he take an off-field role as a player representative in such matters? Given he has won absolutely everything in the game, but also seen his career affected by injury (and the schedule) more than most, there is probably no better option.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments! Are there too many games in the football calendar? Or is a Club World Cup the way forward?