05 May 2020

Premier League games may not have 45-minute halves when they return, says PFA chief Gordon Taylor

Premier League matches could be shortened to less than 45 minutes per half as part of a series of changes being considered for when football returns.

Other options under review include more substitutes and neutral venues to ensure the season is completed.

Professional Footballers' Association chief Gordon Taylor admits it is not ideal to change the format of the domestic competitions in order to finish the campaign, but it is something they are looking at.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he said: "We don't know the future but we do know what propositions have been put, what ideas have been put - the possibility of having more substitutes, games possibly not being the full 45 minutes each way, talks of neutral stadiums.

"Ideally, you want to keep the integrity of the competition and, of course, that was about playing home and away and having the same squad of players as before it was suspended.

"The very fact that you are in professional sport, you need to be very resilient. You need to be able to bounce back because you'll get more setbacks than you will good times, and I would like to think that's how my members are.

“So it remains in process and we shall just have to wait and see, and look at it on a day by day basis and see if it's achievable. But if we don't try, then it's never going to be achievable.”

All English football has been suspended since mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic and no return date has yet been confirmed.

In Germany, the Bundesliga looks set to resume behind closed doors from May 15 as Chancellor Angela Merkel prepares to ease lockdown measures even further tomorrow.

Meanwhile in France, the Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 seasons have finished prematurely after the country's government announced no sporting events will take place before September.

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