Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko on Saturday slammed the Premier League football calendar for the upcoming 2012-13 season, saying playing in the depths of winter could spell disaster for the game.
Russia is switching from a summer to a winter league as of next season to synchronize with the rest of Europe.
The new schedule has three rounds of the championship in December, attracting protests and even mockery from players. Sports minister Vitaly Mutko added his criticism on Saturday.
"Of course, we can't be playing in December," Mutko said in comments on Russian state television. "We will take the one who composed this calendar to the stands in Novosibirsk and let him sit there," Mutko said. "There is no sense in just killing football."
December daytime highs average minus 5 degrees Celsius in Moscow, minus 4 in St Petersburg, and minus 16 in Novosibirsk, about 3,400 kilometers east of the Russian capital and home to second-tier side Sibir.
Last season lasted 14 months, starting in March 2011 and finishing this May to allow next season to begin in July, slightly earlier than the rest of Europe to allow for a winter break.
The long campaign was one of the reasons given by Mutko for the collapse of Russia's national team at Euro 2012 playoffs.
After a bright start with a 4-1 win over the Czech Republic, Russia played out a 1-1 draw with co-host Poland and then were eliminated after a shock 1-0 defeat to Greece.
