A HOUSE DIVIDED
D-day looms over Premier restart... and the vote for a green light hangs by thread
IT is the vote which will decide the future of football. This Friday, just hours after the Government make their next decision on lockdown, the 20 clubs in the Premier League are to convene to decide whether they begin again in “approved” neutral venues. Will it be restart or no start? The clues to which way it will go seemed clear from the video conference gathering last Friday when the clubs were presented with the proposals. Starting at 10.30am, all clubs were given a chance to air their views, which is why the meeting took nearly four hours, but for those on the call it was obvious which way the wind was blowing... for a restart.
However, Premier League rules mean votes need a 14-6 majority to get a motion through – and it appears to be as finely balanced at exactly that figure in favour of the restart.
According to our source, the clubs who spoke against it in the current guise were those in the bottom six – Brighton, West Ham, Watford, Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Norwich.
Our source said it was not the ‘big six’ against the rest but the bottom six against the rest after Newcastle, Southampton, Burnley, Crystal Palace, Leicester and Sheffield United “were all very strong on finishing”.
The naysayers might not want to end the season full-stop but are against the current proposals, especially matches being played at neutral grounds.
Brighton said five of their remaining nine games were supposed to be at home,