Former Premier League defender William Gallas has slammed Premier League chiefs for not allowing players enough rest after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The World Cup final will be contested on December 18 with the Premier League resuming just eight days later on Boxing Day.

12 Chelsea stars participated in the World Cup and Gallas believes the lack of recovery time might affect results with players still grieving crashing out of the World Cup.

“The problem is that [players] have to go straight back to their clubs and there is no recovery time,” Gallas told Genting Casino.

“I don’t know how they are going to manage the disappointment of crashing out of the World Cup. It will be very hard.

“Will the players have the energy to train while thinking about the fact that they crashed out and could have won it?

“England had a strong squad and they could have won it, that is a feeling that will be hard for these players to forget.

“I’m not sure how the clubs will help the players. The clubs will need to find the right solutions because the Premier League starts again on Boxing Day.

“I don’t expect the players who played in the quarter-finals will play on Boxing Day. I think the clubs should let them rest and they should come back in January.”