Steven Gerrard: Covid anxiety left Aston Villa player ‘reluctant to get out of car’
Steven Gerrard says anxiety over Covid-19 is reaching such a level that one Aston Villa player was reluctant to get out of their car.
An outbreak at Villa forced their match against Burnley last Saturday to be postponed at short notice, and Gerrard says it will be a “nightmare” if the club have to tackle two matches in three days with only 14 players available.
“We had a situation at the weekend where one of the players was reluctant to get out of his car because he had some symptoms and he’s got a young family, and you can totally understand his view in his situation,” Gerrard said.
“This is a guy who’s got a young family, it is Christmas time, and that’s the situation everyone is in. No one wants to get this virus. Everyone wants to protect their own families. This is our job and your priority is always going to be your family, of course it is.
“Thankfully he was tested after and he didn’t have a situation, but that player would not have been available for me on the day, and these are the little situations that people don’t see. We’ve got a major responsibility to listen to the players and deal with every situation as it comes your way.”
Top-flight managers will meet with Premier League executives on Thursday to air their concerns over the current Covid wave and to discuss possible changes in procedure to protect players and squads.No agenda had been agreed on Wednesday for the meeting but both sides are expected to lay out their positions before the Boxing Day fixtures. On Monday club owners agreed to play on despite the latest Omicron wave of Covid which has led to 10 Premier League games being called off, but new testing processes were agreed upon and the possibility of new rules for unvaccinated players were discussed.
Villa are due to host Chelsea on Boxing Day and travel to Leeds two days later. Gerrard, asked how they would manage if they had only 14 players available, said: “Hopefully we won’t be in that situation, but we’re going to need a bit of luck; we’re going to need some testing results to go our way. Hopefully we won’t be in that situation, but if you are, that is a nightmare, simple as that.”
Gerrard was speaking on a day when Liverpool’s captain, Jordan Henderson, said player welfare was not taken seriously in England and Arsenal’s manager, Mikel Arteta, said players’ concerns needed to be listened to. Henderson is expected to outline his views at a meeting the Premier League is holding on Thursday with captains or senior players from all 20 clubs.