A lot has been made this season of the amount of matches that soccer players at the biggest clubs are potentially having to play. The formats of the Premier League and the Carabao Cup have remained the same, while clubs will potentially actually face fewer matches in the FA Cup after replays were scrapped entirely from the first round onwards.

However, the revamped Champions League format has seen the potential for an extra four fixtures to be added to a team's schedule, while next summer will see the inaugural, expanded 32-team Club World Cup take place over a month in the United States.

That represents an undoubted net increase in matches for those clubs competing at the highest level, and many players have spoken out against soccer's governing bodies since the start of the season, including Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson and Manchester City midfielder Rodri.

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"Maybe our opinion doesn't matter, but everybody knows what we think about having more games," Alisson said in September about the increase in matches. "Everybody's tired of that."

Rodri, meanwhile, said earlier in the campaign that strike action from the players was close; less than a week after those comments, he had suffered a potentially season-ending knee injury, which Pep Guardiola would later blame on an increased workload.

Sympathy from soccer supporters with multi-millionaire athletes is usually in short supply, and a decision reportedly made by Manchester United has given fans plenty of ammo to use against those players that complain about the congested fixture schedule.

That's because The Athletic reports that United is planning a post-season trip to Malaysia to increase revenue. The Red Devils will reportedly earn around $10m from the trip, which is yet to be confirmed, and will help the club to comply with the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules (PSR).

Former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was a renowned critic of the Premier League's fixture schedule and would no doubt have taken a dim view of a post-season trip across the world were one to have been thrust on him during his time at Liverpool.

There's no indication that Liverpool is considering a similar move to United, and the club would be wise not to if it wants to preserve the players after what has already been an intense season.