The Premier League officially gave the green light for players to return to training in small groups from Tuesday May 19, but not everyone reacted to the decision with positivity.
After a conference call involving all 20 Premier League clubs, it was announced that clubs will be able to allow their players to return to training in “small group” sessions from Tuesday May 19.
The move received unanimous approval from the 20 teams, and marks the first step in the Premier League’s “Project Restart” plan, which is intended to bring football back to England with clubs completing the 2019-20 season following the season’s enforced shutdown on March 9 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The decision to return to training was taken in consultation with Premier League doctors, as well as players, managers, independent experts and the UK government.
But the decision has not been met by universal approval, with Watford striker Troy Deeney making an appearance on UK breakfast TV show “Good Morning Britain” to pre-emptively react to the news of restrictions being part-lifted to allow players to resume training ahead of a potential return to action.
Troy Deeney needs to watch this video! If this doesn’t make you feel safe then i give up! Premier League will follow suit pic.twitter.com/tElwB7AQDd
And the straight-talking striker was clear in his criticism of the league and the government for not providing players with sufficient information to ease any fears they may have about returning to action.
“I think the concern is very much that Phases Two and Three have not been clearly laid out,” he said.
“There has been a lot of what I would class as simple questions that have not been answered.
“For example, you can talk about the BAME situation. Government guidelines are saying it is four times more likely for people of color to get the illness and twice as likely to have lasting illnesses, but there is no extra screening and no additional checks being done on any players because it costs too much money.
‘When people can’t answer the questions, you start to panic and worry.’Watford captain @T_Deeney, whose son has breathing difficulties, says he is worried that there aren’t clear and safe measures to protect footballer’s families if they return to playing football. pic.twitter.com/6ubgo973w0
“Simple things like that are where people are asking questions and it’s not being answered. When people can’t answer the questions, you start to panic and start to worry.
“I saw (Chelsea striker) Tammy Abraham say his dad has asthma and he lives with him, so he has concerns. It’s not just players at the bottom who are trying to stay in the league. There are concerns right across the board. I have had a lot of texts from players who are worried about coming out and speaking.”
In addition to his fears about a lack of information, Deeney also offered a moral argument against returning to action so swiftly.
“We see a lot about care workers and key workers not getting tested and people dying in nursing homes and things of that nature, yet we are expected to have just short of 3,500 tests per month as football players, and PPE for all the staff,” he said.
“How long will it be until that’s the players’ fault? ‘Look at these prima donna footballers that are getting all this preferential treatment when there’s people dying on the street’.
3pm #football matches could be shown on TV.Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden MP, tells #BBCBreakfast he’s looking at whether the current rule could be relaxed when the Premier League resumes.More here: https://t.co/bt9vPmXY6spic.twitter.com/bEyHAxbg9e
“That was posed by one of my colleagues. As of five, six weeks ago the NHS was in dire straits and it was put on footballers to make donations, which was already going to happen. But when politicians are calling us out, there is an underlying message that no matter what we do we are painted to be the bad guys.”
A statement released by the Premier League said, “Premier League Shareholders today voted unanimously to return to small group training from tomorrow (Tuesday) afternoon – the first step towards restarting the Premier League, when safe to do so,” said a statement from the Premier League.
So thrilled that the Premier League found a way to return to small group training TOMORROW – the first step towards restarting the Premier League, when safe to do so.
“Step One of the Return to Training Protocol enables squads to train while maintaining social distancing. Contact training is not yet permitted,” the statement continued.
“Strict medical protocols of the highest standard will ensure everyone returns to training in the safest environment possible.
BREAKING – All Premier League clubs will reportedly be back in training tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/zXHJHkRLTv
“The health and wellbeing of all participants is the Premier League’s priority, and the safe return to training is a step-by-step process.
“Full consultation will now continue with players, managers, clubs, the PFA (Professional Footballers’ Association) and LMA (League Managers Association) as protocols for full-contact training are developed.”
