England's Palmer a 'victim' of 'sick' schedule, says PFA chief

Chelsea forward Cole Palmer withdrew from the recent England squad

Cole Palmer is the "victim" of a "sick" system that is expecting too much of players, according to Professional Footballers' Association chief executive Maheta Molango.

Molango said Palmer's recent withdrawal from the England squad highlighted a match calendar that is unsustainable and has become the "survival of the fittest".

Five players – Palmer, Marcus Rashford, Declan Rice, Kobbie Mainoo and Tino Livramento , external - pulled out of Thomas Tuchel's squad ahead of the latest international window.

"When England see five players who need to withdraw when the single most proud moment a player has is to be called up for the national team, you just ask yourself, what's wrong about the industry?" Molango said at the Fifpro performance summit in London.

"You see people like Cole Palmer, someone who would have played four consecutive summers in a row had he gone to the World Cup, and you wonder why is he missing?

"He's missing because he's a victim of the calendar and that's something that needs to absolutely trigger the alarm bells."

The PFA and global players' union Fifpro have repeatedly warned about the impact of an increasingly congested calendar on player welfare.