The Premier League and EFL seasons will restart no earlier than April 30, the Football Association has announced.
Representatives of the 20 Premier League teams discussed options in a video conference call as they bid to finish the current campaign, despite coronavirus continuing to spread across the United Kingdom.
Player contracts either expire on June 30 or roll on to the 2020-21 campaign, creating a series of legal issues which the game’s authorities are desperate to avoid if the impact of Covid-19 allows.
UEFA are keen for domestic football to end by that date and there is understood to be a broad consensus among top flight clubs that finishing the season is preferable but an acknowledgement games will be delayed perhaps until the end of April or even later.
As Standard Sport revealed on Monday, early discussions centred around a possible mid-May resumption which would create at least 11 gameweeks to finish the outstanding Premier League, EFL and FA Cup matches.
However, an earlier resumption is preferable given UEFA’s insistence the Europa League and Champions League Finals take place on June 24 and June 27 respectively, squeezing the timeframe further.
