Project Restart
Arsenal set to sell goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez
Arsenal are prepared to sell goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez in the summer transfer window, according to reports from The Athletic. The 27-year-old has been with Arsenal for a decade now, but he is likely to leave in the coming weeks. He shone in the absence of Bernd Leno during Project Restart and has expressed to desire to continue to start regularly, be it at Arsenal or elsewhere. However, the Gunners consider Leno as their first choice. The German is fit again to resume his duties which leave Arsenal little choice but to allow Martinez to leave. Martinez has two years remaining on his current deal worth £20,000 per week. His agents have been looking to renegotiate his terms for some time, but talks have been delayed due to a number of factors. Should he leave the club, Arsenal would be ex...
Premier League players ‘offered incentives’ by clubs
Premier League stars feel that their clubs are trying to influence them with unethical behaviour as teams gear up for the crucial Project Restart vote next week. Top-flight chiefs have desperately been trying to find a way to return to action, despite hundreds of people still being killed by coronavirus every day in the United Kingdom. And according to the Mail, Premier League stars are growing increasingly “wary of their employers’ motives”. This is a crucial week for the league, as it tries desperately to get the show back on the road in order to avoid devastating financial consequences. But while Premier League officials are all hoping to get things back up and running, not every club feels the same way. In fact, different clubs appear to hold different party lines, with a divide openin...
Another Premier League player tests positive for novel coronavirus
A third first-team player from Brighton & Hove Albion tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, the Premier League club’s chief executive Paul Barber has confirmed. Two Brighton players had contracted the novel coronavirus in March and April and the latest positive result could cast doubts on the Premier League’s plans to resume the season that has been suspended due to the pandemic. Clubs are due to meet on Monday to further discuss “Project Restart” which envisages a return to play in June once given the green light from government, with the remaining 92 matches held behind closed doors at neutral venues. “It is a concern. Unfortunately we’ve had a third player test positive yesterday,” Barber told Sky Sports on Sunday. “So despite all of the measures that we’ve been taking over the ...
Will Premier League with no fans be worth the wait?
The Premier League is adamant that it can overcome huge logistical challenges to get players back on the pitch during the coronavirus crisis but has long since accepted there will be no fans in the stadiums. English Football Association chairman Greg Clarke became the latest senior figure to admit this week that social-distancing guidelines make it impossible for supporters to congregate in stadiums “any time soon”. The drive behind the Premier League’s “Project Restart” is the attempt to avoid having to pay back millions in TV revenue. Clubs could reportedly miss out on £762 million ($946 million) for failing to complete this season alone. According to UEFA’s latest European Club Footballing Landscape report, just 13 percent of the Premier League’s revenue comes from gate receipts. Englan...
Nine Premier League clubs to allow stars miss project restart
Up to nine Premier League clubs will let their players skip Project Restart over fears they could infect their families with coronavirus. England’s top division is looking at a return date of June 12 as they attempt to conclude this season. But The Sun have reported that nearly half of the league’s teams have conceded forcing players back into action while the virus is active will be impossible. A source told the publication: “If someone has a partner who’s pregnant, or close family who has cancer, how can we force them to play in those circumstances?” It is understood that teams from across the table are concerned with player safety and one team has told stars they do not have to play. One club who will be without key players should football return is Aston Villa, with manager Dean Smith ...
