Or are they just going to write it off and start again, seems a bit harsh if it did finish now as it’s the only time we’ve dropped in the bottom 3 all season.
I love watching footie in the summer when it’s nice and sunny and warm, so would love for it to be finished in June or July, with the new season starting in September.
All hypothetical I know, and really not important in the scheme of things at the moment, but it’s nice to think of some kind of normal in the future.
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We need to suck it up and try and stay up when they finish this season before worrying about the next one. Which is what they will do IMO. And rightly so.
Key thing is the contract situation on June 30th. If the season can be completed before then then fine, if not then I don't see how it can be.
It will be scrapped. I'm convinced of it.
For the season to finish they need to keep everyone virus free, overcome the 30th june contracts and can't be seen for preferential treatment.
Only takes 1 person to become infected , a team to lose a couple of players over contracts and others sports to say why are they allowed to play and not us.
Then it's game over.
I can’t see it happening, football might have to take it on the chin and regroup another day a start a fresh with whoever is left standing.
Give Liverpool the league and promote Leeds and relegate any one of the other clubs, by drawing straws outside the Sky super 6. Sky Sports could even a special out of it.
Either completely scrapped or some compromise for promotion/ relegation.
Probably completely voided.
What Bowyer said in his interview is about where I am with it. There are far too many compound problems to overcome resulting in too many risks, even with games played behind closed doors. He said he had players, before lockdown, not wanting to train because they have a pregnant wife or girlfriend at home. It only takes one person involved in any of these behind-closed-doors games, or even a relative, to develop the virus and the media will instantly link the two, whether it happened at a game or not (seems to be the MO with main stream media at the moment)
I think the EFL statement is just skirting around the problem myself. I don't think it takes an expert to work out it probably isn't worth the risk to finish the season
Not sure if it's viable but maybe teams sharing training facilities etc to reduce risk, less staff contact overall in terms of groundsmen, catering etc, and playing games at training grounds with decent pitches, hypothetically we could share training facilities with a couple of other teams, given the size of Sparrows Lane.
For the Premier League, they should base all teams in hotels near St George's Park and just play as many games as quickly as possible and put them all on TV and make a big event out of it, to replace the lack of Euros. Play games at 11, 1, 3, 5.15 and 7.30 every day, 5 games a day every day for 5 weeks, then last game of the season all 10 games on a match choice deal, would fill the 40 days with a festival of football.
We were discussing how many people would still go to the ground, how many people would they let in i.e in terms of camera crew, players, staff, admin, possible small catering for the players etc...
Think they could do it quite easily if the numbers are reduced to as low as reasonably practicable, not sure whether the authorities would allow it though.
(40) - You've probably got about 18-20 players from each team that'll turn up to each game (wont necessarily be the same players each week either as you'll have injury / suspension)
e.g. you cant just order that the only players that turn up are the 16 in the match day squad as if there is illness that morning or injury occures during the warm up what then?
(4) - The number of officials required for the game
(20) - Roughly ten people on the backroom staff (Manager | Assistant | Coaches | Physios etc.) for each team
(4) - Camera Crew?
(4) - Comms Teams / Radio coverage to provide match updates for those who wont be watching games or have twitter etc.
Then you've got the St. Johns Ambulance and Police who'll surely be required - the latter to ensure that fans dont show up at grounds which is bound to happen
So roughly you can expect around 80-100 people working at each game
To put that into context - there will be 46 games held in the top four Divisions each round meaning that 4,600 people will be required each week to complete a game... In the Premier League alone there will be roughly 9,000 people required to complete the entire season (thats not taking into account the Football League games)... Of course put the St. John's Ambulance and Police back into the equasion thats a good number of staff that could be deployed to areas that are more needed
Oh and thats just one Sport, when you then think about Golf | Formula One etc. restarting behind closed doors then even more numbers are involved - Nor do they appear to be taking into account the logistics; Brighton v Newcastle is one game still to be played - What do they tell Newcastle they have to travel down on the day of the game (Hotels cant be used surely?), then you've either got to factor in the Bus Driver or if they go via. an Airport then you've got to add in people there etc.
There is no fair way of doing this (just as all of us being stuck at home is not ‘fair’) but the fairest way seems to me to make it null and void. Football must sacrifice in the way we all have.
But Sky are desperate to crown Liverpool and see Leeds promoted and they’ll be applying as much pressure as they can (probably financial) to all clubs to see the season out with a football bonanza. They will have lost a lot of money due to subscription pauses/cancellations and they’ll do anything to get it back.
It’s the way football is and has been for a number of years, it stinks and seems so unimportant right now.
Aside from very legitimate health worries for players and fans, it will mean additional costs and almost guaranteed relegation for us. As Bowyer said on Talksport, though he says he'd personally love the season to complete as the "right thing to do", there are players who would be unable to give their all, owing to contract end dates, and a couple who have pregnant wives.
On the other hand, by not resuming there could be additional legal challenges from suppliers on contracts demanding payment. And the loss of matchday revenues which would help cover some operating expenditure. I expect those can be managed more easily where most of society is trying to manage broadly the same issue, assuming money is made available to cover this contingency.
The issue will be the players fitness and the much discussed contractual situations. The FA/UEFA/FIFA must not allow any players moving clubs after their contracts expire on June 30th to play for any other club until this season is resolved. Fitness ? .. be prepared for lot of sub standard performances and some dodgy, rusty teamwork
Still reckon they will scrap the season. I think they will push these crazy ideas which aren’t possible to mitigate the legal challenges, by saying we tried everything but it wasn’t possible to finish the season.