The English Football Association has issued a strongly-worded response after Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp revealed that he would not be present for his side's upcoming FA Cup replay against Shrewsbury Town.
On Sunday, following Liverpool's 2-2 draw with minnows Shrewsbury, Reds boss Klopp explained that he and his senior players would not be present at the replay between the two sides due to the match falling within the newly-introduced Premier League winter break.
"The FA went to great lengths to create an annual mid-season player break, working closely with the Premier League and its clubs," the official statement read.
"It is a new and significant addition to the English football calendar and is designed to benefit clubs and their players.
"To accommodate the annual mid-season player break, the FA rescheduled the Emirates FA Cup fifth round to midweek and removed fifth-round replays from the calendar. This allowed the Premier League room in its calendar to have a split round of fixtures over two weekends.
"Prior to start of the 2019/20 season, all clubs accepted that Emirates FA Cup fourth-round replays, where required, would have to take place during the first week of the mid-season player break.
"This will only affect a small number of clubs due to the split of Premier League fixtures in the mid-season player break."
