The Premier League season begins on 21 August - just 33 days after the World Cup final. For some clubs, that leaves barely enough time to welcome players back from the mandatory three-week post-tournament break required under Fifa regulations. Four Tottenham players were still involved on the final weekend and may have little more than a week of training before the new campaign starts. Chelsea too were significantly affected. Manchester City and Arsenal have their own concerns after seeing more players than any other Premier League club reach the latter stages.

Tottenham are among the clubs whose pre-season preparations have been most significantly impacted. Cristian Romero and new signing Marcos Senesi reached the final with Argentina, while Pedro Porro helped Spain lift the trophy. Assuming players take the minimum three weeks off, Romero, Senesi and Porro would not return until 9 August, leaving around two weeks to reintegrate before their season begins at Brentford on 22 August.

Manchester City and Arsenal had the greatest concentration of players making deep runs. City's Rodri played 726 minutes helping Spain win, while Arsenal's Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka remained involved until England's third-place play-off. The workload concerns are already being felt: Rodri recently had back surgery and Saliba will be sidelined for an "extended period" with a back issue.

With players entitled to a minimum three-week break, those involved in the final on 19 July have an earliest return date of 9 August. That leaves clubs with roughly 12 days to reintegrate key players before competitive football begins.