Premier League faced a new delay due to the players voice safety concerns

The Premier League is facing the possibility of having to delay its Project Restart after a pair of crucial meetings with players and managers provoked a series of robust exchanges and diverging views.

A planned resumption of play on 12 june is now looking less likely, and kick-off a week later is now a possibility after issues over protocols for a safe return to play and concerns over the need for more training came to the fore.

Players had not previously had a chance to share their views on restart plans and at a two-hour meeting between 20 club captains, Premier League officials and the deputy chief medical officer, Jonathan van Tam, several of them chose to get concerns off their chest.

Played aired worried over safety, which the Premier League hopes to address with its return-to-play protocol. Others were concerned that giving their consent to abide by the protocol might leave them legally exposed should they contract Covid‑19, but those fears are believed to have subsequently been allayed.

In the managers’ group there was a focus on getting ready for the restart but again the protocols were central. The existing return-to-play arrangements do not address a safe way to engage in contact training, and without that players cannot get fully match fit. Some managers are believed also to have asked questions about what should be done in the event of a player testing positive for Covid-19, with the league still to agree upon a position over whether the entire squad should isolate as a result.