Players ‘will pay big price’ if rushed back
TOP football fitness coach Raymond Verheijen has called on the Premier League’s stars to join a worldwide player revolt if clubs gamble on the coronavirus crisis.
Verheijen, the outspoken Dutchman who has worked with Manchester City and Barcelona as well as the national teams of Holland, South Korea, Russia and Wales, believes the season should be cancelled NOW.
But he fears all the game’s governing bodies are ready to take a chance on the health and fitness of players in a bid to save billions in lost revenue.
The Premier League will have to pay a £762million rebate to TV companies if the campaign is abandoned.
And Verheijen has urged the game’s biggest names to save football from its own greed.
Verheijen said: “The season must be cancelled to protect the players.
“I have spoken to players about the coronavirus situation, and they are worried about being told to play before the crisis is over.
“They are scared about becoming infected by a team-mate or an opponent.
“So that’s the first thing the football authorities need to address.
“And the second issue that needs to be raised is the possibility of players suffering career-threatening injuries.
“Everyone understands that there is huge financial pressure on the game – and we all want to see football resumed as quickly as possible.
“But only when the crisis is over – and the reality is that won’t be possible to finish the current season by the end of the summer.
“Most players don’t have the influence to say, ‘I am not playing until I know it’s safe’.
“Only the players’ unions and the best footballers in the world have that kind of power.
“It would be a powerful message if the stars of the Premier League joined big names like Messi and Ronaldo to say, ‘None of us will play until the game is safe’.”
Verheijen, 48, believes any other scenario would be a case of clubs playing Russian roulette with their players’ futures.
He says sports science studies show a raft of serious injuries if teams return to action without giving their squads weeks to recover fitness.
He added: “The coronavirus crisis maybe unique, but in many ways the postponement of matches can be compared to what happens at the end of every season.
“First there is an off-season, when players are on holiday for three or four weeks, and are given individual training programmes to maintain some level of fitness.
“Let’s say that if their fitness level is at 10 when they stop playing football, and during this period of relative inactivity that fitness will drop to perhaps a level of five. When they go into a preseason of five or six weeks to prepare to start playing again it usually takes about a month to get back up to optimum fitness.
“When football resumes after this crisis, players are going to need the equivalent of a preseason.
“Players have been in relative inactivity now for maybe three weeks.
“If that period stretches to six or eight weeks – or even longer – then it is logical that they will need a longer period to recover their physical condition. “That isn’t my opinion, that is a fact based on the science.
“Administrators want the game to return as soon as possible for financial reasons.
“So players will be told to play when they’re not ready – and that means playing Russian roulette with their careers.
“People talk about the need to maintain the integrity of the game by resuming the season.
“But is there any integrity putting players at risk of illness and injury?”
Verheijen’s warning is backed by the compelling evidence he has gained through years of experience working at the elite level.
He said: “Even when a player is 100 per cent fit, they need a minimum of 72 hours to recover between games.
“If they are not at peak fitness they will need even longer.
“By cramming games into a short space of time, they will load their bodies with fatigue – and that is the perfect recipe for injuries.
“And I am not just talking about muscle strains that will heal in a few weeks. There will be a much higher risk of ACL tears and injuries that can potentially end their careers.”