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In the coming weeks, it seems increasingly likely that the Premier League will return to action. But not as we know it.
In an attempt to resume action amid the coronavirus pandemic, discussions have focused on the safest possible ways to start the season and bring it to a conclusion: from where to host matches to who can attend.
There are still a lot of decisions up in the air, but what we can be sure of is that it will be unlike any version of high-level soccer fans.
Football could return to the UK in the coming weeks, but many things will have changed.
While the watchful eye of the football world will fall on the Bundesliga and its attempts to navigate the final part of the campaign during the crisis, England’s top flight will also plan its own return, with the wheels already in full swing.
The biggest indication that football is slated to return in Britain is the sight of players already returning to training.
On Monday, 47 days since the league was officially suspended on March 13, both Arsenal and West Ham players were able to return to training camps. However, the new schedules for the stars are a clear indication that they are returning to a very different setting.
At Arsenal’s London Colney base, players arrived at staggered intervals, allowed only to drive alone to and from the ground. Each received his own ball and his own field to train.
David Luiz arrives in training after Arsenal became the first club to invite their players back
The West Ham players observed similar restrictions, each taking turns to reach hour-long sessions.
In Germany, the plan for a return to action contains the premise of testing twice a week, with team meetings held only for compelling reasons and stars encouraged to shower and change at home. If successful, most of these rules are likely to be adopted here.
It could create an extremely lonely existence on the training ground for players, and it could get worse. Bundesliga officials want strict measures to be put in place regarding contact with families, and for players to be prohibited from physical contact with loved ones if they have any symptoms.
One way to minimize this, and one option that has been discussed regarding the Premier League, is for teams to settle in hotels for a period of time, away from their families.
If managers and players can expect a new normal, so can fans.
When the league returns, it will be done behind closed doors, with no fans allowed inside the ground. Gary Neville, speaking on the Sky Sports soccer program, warned that this could be the case for up to six months.
Gary Neville has suggested that supporters could be off the grounds for at least six months.
Instead, it will take a group of at least 300 people to make sure each match runs smoothly. That includes the media, ground and technical personnel, security, and staff members from both teams.
While fans won’t be able to watch in person, they may have more access to the action from their couch than ever before.
Due to an unprecedented situation, UEFA has announced that the 3pm blocking rule, which prevents broadcasters from showing games on Saturday afternoons, has been lifted, paving the way for more matches to be shown on television.
UEFA has announced a temporary lifting of the blocking rule on Saturday at 3 p.m. for broadcasters
There is also the possibility that the final matches of the season may be on open television.
There has even been talk that the matches will be available on broadcast television, and the secretary of the department of media, culture and sport, Oliver Dowden, emphasized the importance of the league’s return for the country’s morale. Staggered start times would also allow more games to be shown on television than ever before.
However, any such deal will require the agreement of both BT Sport and Sky Sports, which are already trying to stem the flow of losses after a long period without their main product – live soccer.
While fans know where they will be looking from, it is still unclear at all where the matches will take place.
As previously reported by SportsmailIt seems increasingly likely that neutral centers will be selected across the country to host games.
These stadiums, selected by geographic location, could even host multiple games in a single day in a bid to help teams cope with their remaining matches in a bid to complete the season before August.
Both Wembley and St George’s Park have been offered as venues to host matches, while Championship and League One grounds could also be allocated, should the EFL scrap its seasons.
Matches are increasingly likely to be played in neutral locations such as Wembley Stadium
The Football Association has also offered St George’s Park to organize some matches
On the field, the rules can be changed to help clubs cope with the hectic schedule at the end of the season. Teams may be allowed up to five substitutions each in an attempt to keep the squads fresher for a busy game, while there is a chance that VAR may also be scrapped.
Depending on the extent to which the league wants to listen to medical advisers, players may have to wear face masks when they return to the field. In Spain, there is even talk of sterilizing the ball before each game, and that corner grip is completely prohibited.
Even with the rules on the field of discussion, soccer could return a very different sport.
Due to the tight schedule to end the season, clubs may use five substitutions
