Having been sidelined since March, the English top flight is eyeing a return from its coronavirus suspension on June 8
Brighton striker Glenn Murray has expressed his concern that a premature return for the Premier League could put many people’s safety in jeopardy.
The league has been suspended since March due to the coronavirus pandemic, but has been eyeing a return behind closed doors on June 8.
Premier League clubs will meet on Friday to discuss plans to resume the 2019-20 campaign, with government approval still needed before any plan can move forward.
The English top-flight is hoping to avoid the fate of the Netherlands and France, which recently pulled the plug on their leagues’ respective 2019-20 campaigns.
Murray, though, isn’t sure that a hasty return is a good idea, pointing out the fact that games behind closed doors will require far more people than just the players.
“The list is quite long. It’s not just a squad of 25 going to play another squad of 25 and that’s all that will be involved,” Murray told the Daily Mail.
“It’s going to be a hell of a lot of people, which I think could potentially be putting people at risk.
“I have heard reports about social distancing until the New Year and I cannot quite get my head around how we social distance while training among ourselves and then on a Saturday.
“How do you social distance on a corner kick and things like that?
“It’s going to be very difficult but the decision is above my pay grade so I’ll wait for it to be made by the bigwigs.”
Gary Neville has joined Murray in his scepticism, saying that the Premier League is being mainly guided by financial considerations rather than health concerns.
“People are now assessing risk. How many people have to die playing football in the Premier League before it becomes unpalatable? One? One player? One member of staff goes into intensive care? What risk do we have to take?
“The discussion is purely economic,” Neville said on Sky Sports‘ The Football Show.
Earlier this week, Oliver Dowden, the UK’s Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, insisted that no return to the field would happen unless it was deemed safe.
“I personally have been in talks with the Premier League with a view to getting football up and running as soon as possible in order to support the whole football community,” Dowden said.
“But of course, any such moves would have to be consistent with public health guidance.”
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