Crystal Palace chairman, Steve Parish has warned that as much as we want the Premier League to return, it may prove impossible-the Project Restart Plan may fail.
Palace chairman, Steve Parish is the latest football supremo to cast doubts over the feasibility of the 2019/20 Premier League season being completed.
The chairman insists he is all for the season coming to an end on the field of play. Besides it not being his favorite option, he is willing to accept neutral venues.
Speaking to BBC, he is not convinced any of the options are doable.
He said, “Deciding competitively would be best. Obviously, if we can play in our own stadiums that would be preferable for everybody. But for the moment, that situation is with the government and the authorities and not with us.”
“We would be derelict in our duty if we didn’t find a way to try and bring the game back. However, it may prove beyond us.”
“The German example could provide a blueprint for us and clearly we can see some of the early challenges. They may prove insurmountable. But the concern for us is that if they prove insurmountable now then we may be in for a very, very extended period of not being able to play and that has huge ramifications for the game.”
More stumbling blocks
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters previously predicted a loss of at least £1bn. If the League fails to complete the 2019/20 season.
However, Parish believes that deciding the final league positions on the pitch, rather than relying on points per game or taking the current table as the final outcome, is preferable even if conditions are far from ideal.
Parish also underlined that he and his colleagues are keeping football in perspective during the COVID-19 outbreak.
He adds, “Football is entirely unimportant in the context of the public health crisis. We will want assurances as clubs that we are not taking resources away from anyone. We simply can’t take tests away from anyone who is more needful than us.”
As desperate as we are to see the League resume, recent positive coronavirus tests for Premier League players may take this lockdown to a whole new level.