Premier League will meet with players to discuss safety measures if soccer returns in 2020
The Premier League will meet with players to discuss the safety measures that need to be taken in order for soccer to return in 2020. The English Premier League has approval to restart its season in June, but players have to be on board with that move, according to the Telegraph.
The Premier League will hold two meetings Wednesday, hoping to calm fears about playing games during the coronavirus pandemic. During those meetings, the league is expected to present research to players showing they will only be in “infectious distance of each other for an average of only 88 seconds.”
On top of that, the league will advise players to turn their faces away from each other during challenges.
One example that can be cited, and which is expected to be raised, is the contact between players in a tackle with players told there are small changes they can make which will help such as turning their face away when getting up from the challenge and, generally, avoiding face-to-face contact wherever possible.
Should the league restart, players will take part in an “extremely strict testing regime.” Only players who test negative for coronavirus will be allowed to play.
Even if the Premier League is being cautious, it’s going to be difficult to convince players restarting the season is a good idea. Tottenham Hotspur and England defender Danny Rose expressed his displeasure for the idea Monday, saying soccer “shouldn’t even be spoke [sic] about coming back until the numbers have dropped massively.”
If the players agree to restart the season, things will move quickly. The players will be expected to report in a week. The Premier League would then begin the next phrase of the relaunch. Things would increase from there until the league felt games could safely be played.
The biggest question facing any sport looking to relaunch its season is how the sport will handle things if a player were to test positive for coronavirus. The Premier League is not expected to address that issue during Wednesday’s meetings.
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