Glen Johnson believes that because of the fact that Liverpool is playing in Europe this season, their performance has suffered.

According to Johnson, the Reds have been playing twice every week which is putting a lot of pressure on the body of the players. The manager has not been able to put a fresh squad on the pitch all the time unlike the previous season.

When asked why Liverpool hasn’t had a good start in the English top division, Johnson said, “I think the workload is the main reason. The no. of games that we are playing, it takes its toll both on the mind as well as on the body. The players are bound to get tired mentally and physically. There have been injuries as well. So, it’s a little bit tough this time around.”

“Last year, all we had to worry about was the Premiership. The schedule was not that tight. Most of the times, we had fresh legs in the starting XI and that made a huge difference.”

When asked if the team has started to plan for the Champions League home game versus the Spanish club Real Madrid, Johnson said, “No, not yet. We have to go to Loftus Road and that’s what we are thinking about at the moment.

There is no point getting too far ahead of ourselves. Once we get three points in that away game, then, that Champions League game will be on our agenda. For us, it’s as important to do well in the Premiership as in Europe.”
The Reds have just 10 points in 7 games in the Premier League and they are at the 9th position at present. They have won 3 games, have lost 3 and have drawn one.