Exclusive: Phillips admits there could be ‘cut-off point’ before season is scrapped
We’re delighted to welcome former West Brom striker Kevin Phillips as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at The Hawthorns…
Kevin Phillips has warned that there might come a point when English football seasons will have to be scrapped if they are not able to resume soon.
West Brom have not played in over a month and have seen their bid to win promotion to the Premier League paused indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.
There has been worrying talk of the season being declared null and void due to the difficulty of finishing off all remaining fixtures in the Premier League, EFL and National League.
Earlier this month, UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin admitted that he 2019/20 season “will probably be lost” if football does not resume by the end of June.
Phillips concedes that there will come a point when that will be considered more seriously but he is not opposed to seeing matches played behind closed doors in a bid to finish the season as quick as possible.
“There does come a point where you probably have to start considering a cut-off point because if it doesn’t happen in July, do you then go into August? Then, all of a sudden, you have to consider scrapping [the start date for] next season,” Phillips told West Brom News.
“I wouldn’t be against them playing behind closed doors and teams being held up in a hotel to get it done. It’ll all be televised.
“At least that’s an option. Who knows how worse it’s going to get over the next two or three weeks? It’s a tough one.”
At the moment, finishing the current season has to be the priority and if next season has to be pushed back a month or two then so be it.
This crisis is going to play havoc on football scheduling for years and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, which will be held in the winter, is going to cause issues too.
It could be almost half a decade before the structure of seasons returns to how we are used to it being.
In other West Brom news, Bilic has confirmed that Albion will sign this loan star on a permanent deal.