‘UEFA have to advise SPFL’ Cormack demands clarity over how to finish season

ABERDEEN chairman Dave Cormack has appealed to UEFA to give the SPFL clarity about how to conclude the current season at a video conference call tomorrow.

European football’s governing body has arranged a meeting with their 55 member associations to discuss how to proceed with league and cup competitions amid the coronavirus crisis.

Their initial plan to try and finish the 2019/20 campaign by June 30 was branded unrealistic by SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell when it was announced on March 17.

US-based software entrepreneur Cormack, who last week warned no Scottish club could survive six to nine months of the shutdown, is keen for UEFA to provide guidance on how to move forward.

He is keen to see the Ladbrokes Premiership played to completion – but admitted that is appearing increasingly unlikely as the Covid-19 outbreak continues to cause widespread disruption.

“It would be good to get some clarity from UEFA and the authorities as to where we go from here,” he said. “Everybody is in a difficult position, in an ideal world, with sporting integrity, we play all the games.

“That’s what everybody wants. But the reality is as the weeks go on that becomes really difficult. I think it’s important for us to put a stake in the ground as to when the next season starts.

“Is it the first weekend in August like normal or do we say it’s the first week of September? These things need to be answered in the next week, the sooner the better. The authorities are in a difficult position, but hopefully they can come forward and give some clarity as to where we are.”

Meanwhile, Cormack has expressed hope that Aberdeen won’t have to cut their players’ wages to survive the suspension.

He said: “First of all, everybody at this club is valuable to us and really important. In an ideal world, the last thing we want to do is want to go down this route but we don’t know what it is right now.

“We’re a well-run club, I believe, with a great balance sheet and no debt. But with no income for three to six months I think all teams in Scotland are going to struggle.

“There are lots of moving parts, whether it be insurance or VAT payments, potential economic support from the government and we still don’t have answers.

“We’ll pull this together in the next few days and take a view as to what we need to do from a cash-flow perspective for the club, we don’t have that answer right now.”