On the other hand, the policy received criticism from those involved in the field. England manager Thomas Tuchel has also shared his frustrations, suggesting that the frequency of the breaks fundamentally alters how a football match is played. For managers who rely on high-intensity rhythm and exhausting the opposition through continuous pressure, a reset every 22 minutes can prove detrimental to their tactical plans.
The Three Lions boss said: “I think that it interrupts and changes the identity of a football match much more than I thought. I had hydration breaks before when it was really, really hot and needed, but they were shorter. They were shorter and they were just in a few matches. In the interests of fairness here, it is now done in every match for every team. It breaks the match almost in four quarters. And I think it changes the characteristic of the match more than I thought.”
While Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk feel the system needs a more flexible approach rather than a blanket rule for every fixture. He said: “Hydration breaks are a bit interesting, because I was obviously watching almost all the games up until today, and every time going to commercial is a bit… Not really that I like it,” Van Dijk explained. “I think for the neutral watchers on TV it’s also not great. If it’s really hot, obviously it would be good to put them in. But I think you have to look at it in every game, separately, in my opinion. But I think I’ve said enough already for that.”
