Sheffield Wednesday players yet to voice concerns over safety of a return to training next week

That’s according to Owls boss Garry Monk who today spoke to the local media, confirming that in keeping with EFL guidelines he was planning a return to ‘small group training’ on May 25.

Monk addressed Wednesday players in a video call yesterday to discuss a potential route forward as English football prepares to complete the season after it was suspended due to the coronavirus crisis in March.

German football returned this weekend and several Premier League clubs will return to socially-distanced training tomorrow after they were given the go-ahead by authorities.

Watford captain Troy Deeney announced that he will not be taking part, however, having expressed worries over the potential impact on the health of his young son.

Charlton Athletic forward Lyle Taylor – a reported transfer target for Wednesday – joined Deeney in pressing forward his concerns on a return to action by saying: “I've seen people saying 'everyone else is being told to go back to work' but that's if they can work in a safe environment, and socially distance from others.

“I can't play football without getting in someone's face or getting touch-tight, so surely my job is not doable. If I can't do it, why are they telling me that I have to go back to work?

“Why are we getting tested? There are people out there dying, people are losing members of their families and people can’t get tests and are suffering and may be carrying this virus.

“Why are we wasting the time and money and resources on people who aren’t vital? We aren’t necessary, we are not the be-all and end-all of everything.”

Speaking to the local media for the first time since the suspension of football, Monk confirmed that while no Wednesday player has yet spoken of similar concerns but that he would be understanding of any that come to light in the coming days.

“There have been no reservations from our players on returning to training just yet, but if a player has an issue or has a feeling that there’s a certain risk to himself or their families, you have to consider that and have to understand that,” Monk said.

“We’ve had none of that as of yet but, if that came along, the right thing to do is to do right by whatever that player or staff member feels. We’d go through that with them and see if we can cross those bridges.

“I think football players have been portrayed particularly poorly during this period, with what I’ve read.

“They’re human beings. They’ve got the same problems as everyone else, the same issues as everyone else, the same concerns as anyone else.”

Deeney also expressed his concerns over an unexplained and disproportionate number of coronavirus cases within BAME communities. Data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS), found black males are 4.2 times more likely to die from a Covid-19-related death and black females are 4.3 times more likely than those of white ethnicity.

Males in the Bangladeshi and Pakistani ethnicity group are 1.8 times more likely to have a coronavirus related death than white males and females 1.6 times more than white women.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has called for a public inquiry into the reasons behind this disproportionate impact on BAME communities.

Deeney said: “For Black, Asian and mixed ethnicities they are four times more likely to get the illness and we're twice as likely to have long-lasting illnesses.

“Is there any additional screening? Heart stuff to see if people have got problems? No. Okay, well I feel like that should be addressed.”

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Dr Mark Gillett, the Premier League's medical advisor, said on Monday: “I think the first thing to acknowledge is there is an increased risk in BAME groups and the reasons for that, I'm sure, will become clear as time progresses.

“But, in mitigation of that, the risk in young, fit, athletes in this age group is still very, very small and I think that is an important factor. I come back again to the fact that we're trying to create the safest possible working environment we can.

“I'm happy that we've mitigated all the risks that we can understand at this point and then when more information becomes available, obviously, we will do everything we can to mitigate against that as well. We will certainly move with this in real-time as more information becomes available.”

On the Sheffield Wednesday players’ response to a likely return to training, Monk said: “We've had no initial feedback from the players yet in terms of concerns but as all this becomes more real and clarified that will change.

“I only spoke to the players last night and we've left it with them to digest and go through that and obviously a response will come whether that's individual.

“Collectively there was no issues with it but as with anything with a group of people sometimes people will want to speak about an issue privately.

“I've had nothing so far but maybe in the coming days, there will be. They know that if anybody does have any issues they know to speak to us and we'll go through them.”