Revealed: The stance Sheffield United will take during crucial Premier League summit
Sheffield United will enter talks designed to explore the possibility of finishing the Premier League season by the end of June with an open mind, a source close to Bramall Lane has told The Star, with officials at the club expected to decide their position after hearing all the arguments put forward.
The stance mirrors the one adopted before last month’s discussions, which ended with representatives from the country’s leading 20 teams making a commitment to try and complete the fixture schedule rather than abandon the campaign altogether because of the coronavirus crisis.
Richard Masters, the PL’s chief executive, had warned its members could face combined losses of up to £1bn if the remaining matches were shelved and defended their right to use the Government’s worker retention scheme after placing non-playing staff on furlough. United confirmed over the weekend that employees unable to perform their usual roles due to the pandemic had been granted temporary leave of absence. But a statement explained they would not initially be seeking helping from the taxpayer to underwrite 80 per cent of the wages of those affected, who are continuing to be paid in full.
United were seventh in the table when English football was placed into lockdown last month.
Today’s meeting has been called to explore the likelihood of fulfilling the remaining games before June 30, when many footballers are set to become free agents.
FIFA, the world governing body, recently issued a set of guidelines designed to address this issue should the proposal prove impossible to implement.
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