CORONAVIRUS CHAOS
PREMIER LEAGUE clubs have been told they must resume playing by mid-may if they are to remain in line with the rest of Europe.
The 20 top-flight clubs agreed unanimously on Thursday to extend the current shutdown to April 30.
The FA also agreed to indefinitely push back the traditional June 1 end of season date, lifting the time limit on when the Premier League and EFL need to complete the current campaign.
But the Premier League is part of a UEFA working committee charged with re-drawing the European football calendar, and they want everything to be wrapped up by June 30.
La Liga president Javier Tebas (below), who is also involved in the UEFA working committee, said: “Given the current situation, we believe we can restart the competitions in mid-may, perhaps during the third week.
“If circumstances permit, we could bring that forward.
“There are 30 affected leagues and 30 cup tournaments and we have to co-ordinate each schedule at both a national and international level. We need to work together.”
Tebas says Europe’s leagues are working to a tight timetable, despite UEFA’S decision to postpone Euro 2020 for a year.
“We are working with leagues such as Serie A in Italy, who have 14 games still to play, or the
Danish league, who have 15 left to play,” said Tebas.
“It’s not wishful thinking, it’s the reality. The competitions can finish in June. We said it before they postponed the European Championships until 2021, and now we have even more reason to say it.
“UEFA’S decision to postpone Euro 2020 will help us find a way to finish our competitions. We made our calendar calculations even before the decision to postpone it.
“We knew we could work something out and we’re now looking at different restart dates. We have to work in reverse, as it were, looking at the latest date we could start playing to work out other options.”
Premier League clubs have resolved to finish this season come what may to safeguard the billions paid in broadcast rights.
And Tebas did concede scrapping their campaigns would cost Europe’s leagues around £6.8bn.
“If we look at the industry as a whole, all 30 European leagues together, €7.5bn is at risk due to this crisis,” he said.
“That would be the cost of not being able to complete every competition. It would put the football industry at risk in some places.
“That’s why we need a solution. It’s a problem that affects us all and all the competitions need to be sorted
out.”
KEEPERS: Pickford (27), Henderson (24), Pope (29) DEFENDERS: Maguire (28), Gomez (24), Mings (28), Tomori (23), Alexanderarnold (22), Trippier (30), Chilwell (24), Williams (20) MIDFIELDERS: Henderson (31), Rice (22), Mount (22), Winks (25), Grealish (25), Maddison (24). FORWARDS: Kane (27), Abraham (23), Sterling (26), Rashford (23), Hudson-odoi (20), Sancho (21).
November 14, 2019
England 7 (Oxladechamberlain, Kane 3, Rashford, Sofrana og, Abraham)
Montenegro 0
ENGLAND: Pickford; Alexander-arnold, Stones, Maguire, Chilwell; Oxladechamberlain (Maddison 56), Winks, Mount (Gomez 70); Sancho, Kane (Abraham 57), Rashford.
November 17, 2019
Kosovo 0 England 4 (Winks, Kane, Rashford, Mount)
ENGLAND: Pope; Alexander-arnold (Tomori 84), Maguire, Mings, Chilwell; Rice, Winks; Oxladechamberlain (Mount 73), Sterling, Hudson-odoi (Rashford 59); Kane.
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