In
his latest column, Sky Sports News' Kaveh Solhekol reveals how all 20
Premier League clubs wanted the season to be suspended on Friday but there
are differing opinions about what will happen next.
The Premier League postponed all fixtures until April 4 at the earliest due
to the threat of the coronavirus.
Some clubs believe the season can still be completed if games start again on
April 4 but others think it is more realistic to start preparing for the
possibility of there being no top-flight football until the start of next
season in August.
One senior source at a Premier League club says he believes there is a 75
per cent chance this season will not be completed.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, he told
Sky Sports News: "I
can't see any chance we will be back in three weeks. This will go on for
months and you wonder even about the start of next season.
"I'd say there is a 75 per cent chance the season will not be completed.
There are huge questions to answer. Does anybody get promoted or relegated?
"Many clubs in all four divisions will struggle financially."
Premier League clubs are waiting to see what happens at the meeting of
European football stakeholders which UEFA has called for on Tuesday.
Leading figures in the European game will decide what to do about this
season's Champions League, Europa League and Euro 2020.
The Premier League would have extra time to complete this season's fixtures
if Euro 2020 is postponed, but it remains to be seen if there is any
appetite from players and clubs to play on into the summer - especially
because the coronavirus infection is expected to build to a peak in the UK
in May or June.
Champion conduct from Klopp
Jurgen Klopp is a great communicator so it was no surprise to see him strike
exactly the right tone in his message to supporters on Friday.
This was not the time to talk about football and Premier League titles.
Klopp used his statement to show his humility and his humanity.
"I've said before that football always seems the most important of the least
important things," he said. "Today, football and football matches really
aren't important at all."
Liverpool are 25 points clear at the top of the table. Stopping the season
with nine games left to play hurts them more than any other Premier League
club.
Liverpool are not champions yet but their manager is acting like one.
Some positive news from Brighton
Good on Brighton for making sure that casual staff who work for them do not
lose out because football has shut down.
During an emergency board meeting on Friday it was agreed that some 600
matchday staff will be paid for the rest of the season whether or not there
are any more games.
"That is a small thing we can do," chief executive Paul Barber said. "The
vast majority of people we employ are local people so it is important we
support them and through them our local economy."
We live in an age of zero hour contracts where millions of workers have zero
job security. Brighton are leading the way on this one. Let's hope other
clubs do the same.
Filling time with some light reading
Thirteen years ago I made the mistake of spending £20 on a copy of
The
Ball Is Round - A History of Global Football by David Goldblatt.
It got great reviews but I have never got round to reading it because it is
almost 1,000 pages long and starts with a chapter on "The Prehistory of
Football".
It's been gathering dust for too long and I'm planning on finishing the
first chapter this weekend.
The index starts on page 933. I should get there by the time football
returns
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