Health and safety of players and staff has to be key to any restart plans, proclaims Frank Lampard

That has seen restart plans put in place for the Premier League, Bundesliga and Serie A with the La Liga also in discussions over said restart. Furthermore, while the Ligue 1, Eredivisie and the Jupiler Pro League have all ended their respective seasons, the rest of the world are looking to restart their football seasons. However, the Premier League’s plans so far have been stalled with their neutral venue plan coming under intense criticism.

However, both the critics and fans alike agree to one thing and that’s the fact that player and staff safety has to be paramount to any plans that the Premier League puts in place. Chelsea boss Frank Lampard had the same idea and even admitted that he’s in constant touch with his team to see how they’re doing in what is a very tough time across the globe.

“The health and safety of players and staff is huge. We play a contact sport we’re all desperate to see – it’s a form of escapism, to watch football, play and train – but how are we not going to put the players at risk within that?” Lampard said in an interview with BT Sport.

“I’m in contact with [Chelsea chairman] Bruce Buck, who goes to the meetings and we speak regularly. The things I welcomed [from Friday’s meeting] were that player and staff health and safety will come first, and the fact they’re going to have conversations with players and managers, because that hasn’t really happened yet.”