Players to be told their ‘new normal’ will have to be accepted
THE Premier League will today explain in detail to captains and managers the significant “cultural changes” that need to be accepted if football is to be played again this year.
The organisation will seek to allay growing health fears during two crunch meetings but will also make it clear that if its plans are not accepted the future of the game is in danger.
Among questions that will be addressed is why it is important for the Premier League to resume next month, with players having expressed their anger at a perceived rush to return. But, it is understood, one of the principles behind Project Restart is that changes have to be made now to deal with the possibility of a second coronavirus peak later in the year that could seriously damage the sport if plans are not tested.
The Premier League will also deal with some of the concerns over spreading the virus on the pitch and will point to studies in England with similar results to research carried out by experts in Denmark.
The Danish work showed that toplevel players were within an infectious distance of each other for an average of only 88 seconds during a match. There are plans to eventually present the findings to the players and the
Professional Footballers’ Association.
Everyone accepts that it is vital the players are happy to resume playing, especially with the strict hygiene regime that will be required. At the same time, the core message from the Premier League, in a morning meeting to the captains and senior players followed by one in the afternoon to the 20 managers, will be they need to realise there will be a “new normal” that has to be accepted if football is to resume.
One example that is expected to be cited is the contact between players in a tackle. The message will be that there are small changes that could help, such as turning the face away
when getting up from the challenge and, generally, avoiding any face-toface contact.
The players will also be reminded that they will be part of an extremely strict testing regime, with the Premier League promising to create the safest working environment possible.
It has been described as a “sterile bubble”. Some players are uneasy at being treated in this way when other workers are not being given the same protection.
The Premier League will be asked what happens if games resume and a player tests positive, but that will not be dealt with today.
Instead, there is a three-step approach to trying to get the Premier League to resume by the middle of next month and each step has to be passed one at a time and will be signed off by Public Health England.
If players accept the changes then they will return next week, by which time the next set of rules, the training protocols, will be ready to be discussed. The final stage will be the return-to-play protocols.
The players will be told that they will not be forced to return and will need to provide written consent to show they understand the protocols, with clubs carrying out rigorous occupational health risk assessments by Friday. (© Daily Telegraph, London)