EXPECT VIRUS TO HAVE A LASTING EFFECT

THERE will come a time when we all go back to work, back into society and return to some form of normality.

And if the current science is correct, coronavirus won’t completely vanish.

I’m afraid it’s something we’ll have to live with and manage for years to come.

Even if it was eradicated, experts predict more pandemics in the future.

In football, I think that will see a big shift in the way everybody does business – at all levels of the game.

Coronavirus has exposed the fact that football clubs – and leagues – can’t absorb a financial shock. They need to be better prepared, spend more wisely, and plan for the worst-case scenario.

One of the first things you’ll see is a decrease in the big wages and big-money transfers of recent seasons.

I also think you might see leagues set up emergency funds, whereby all clubs pay a percentage of their income into a pool of money – like an insurance policy – to protect against any kind of shutdown.

We always expect the FA, the PFA and the Premier League to help lower league clubs, but that takes time, bargaining, and leaves you reliant on the generosity of others.

This way, you could help yourself – quickly – and it might prevent people losing their jobs in the early stages of an outbreak.

Ultimately, I don’t think people will spend as recklessly, or take money for granted from now on.

Clubs will have debts that they are paying off for years and that in turn means belt-tightening right across the board.