FIFA Doc Says Risk Too High To Re-Start Football
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Rotherham United, like the rest of Europe and beyond, have not played a professional football game since the beginning of March and despite there being many ‘ideas’ and ‘plans’ talked about for the re-start as yet, at the end of April, nothing concrete has been announced.
But, after all, it is a difficult decision and the football governing bodies all have their hands tied at the moment.
We were told about Project Restart earlier this week with the Premier League hoping to get back in training next month for a re-start of this season in June.
I thought, at the time, those dates were a bit optimistic and I think that even more today with FIFA’s chief doctor Michel d’Hooghe telling BBC Sport that he suggests ‘avoiding playing competitive football in the coming weeks’ and instead ‘prepare for the start of a good competition next season’.
‘There is a risk,’ doctor said, ‘and it is not a risk that has small consequences. It can have consequences of life and death.’
He goes on to ask the question ‘how can you avoid direct contact’ and he’s right isn’t he. You can’t play football when you have to distance yourselves six feet from others – unless you just have penalty shoot-outs of course – and he also mentions the unhygienic (and in my opinion disgusting) habit of spitting which could cause all sorts of problems – with the only way to get around that is for every player to wear masks.
Already it has been announced that the French Ligue 1 and 2 seasons will not resume, although not yet how the final standings will end while the top flight leagues in Dutch football has also been abandoned with them deciding that there will be no Champions, no promotions and no relegations – fair? Maybe not. Safe? Yes.
It is thought should the football in England re-start that it will be behind closed doors with no crowd and as few people at football stadiums as necessary with everyone there having to take a test to make sure they have no signs of the coronavirus.
I’ll be honest, I can’t see football resuming for a while and I think we need ‘someone’ to make that decision and the decision of what happens to the league standings. Who that ‘someone’ is I don’t know.