Ancelotti speaks on the future of football

Carlo Ancelotti is certain that the coronavirus will have a seismic effect on football once the sport resumes.

Football is suspended in the UK until at least April 30 due to the global pandemic, which has taken almost 30,000 lives and has left the UK in a state of emergency lockdown.

And in an interview with Italian publication Corriere dello Sport, as cited by the Liverpool ECHO, the Everton manager spoke about the short-term priorities and the long-term implications:

“Today, the priority is health; limiting the infection. Everything else is secondary. When you start again, when you finish, the dates, the promises, the hopes... believe me, I don’t care. At the moment, it is the least of my thoughts.

“What matters now is to fight the virus effectively, I repeat. Then, of course, if it will be possible to continue the season, well, otherwise, amen.

“Soon the economy will change, and at all levels. The price of tickets will drop and the TV rights will cost less. Footballers and coaches will earn less. There will be a general downsizing.

”It will be a truer football. Maybe everything will be better.”

Everton revealed on Friday, March 13 that one of their first team players was self-isolating for seven days as a precaution having reported a high temperature the previous evening.

Though that appears the extent of coronavirus’ impact on the club, Ancelotti said that they, are taking no chances, and shared the guidelines put in place by the Premier League.

He added that he does not expect football to have returned by May, with cases of the virus in the UK projected to rise for another three weeks yet:

“The Premier League has forced clubs to give everyone three weeks of vacation, players, coaches, staff. I hear about cutting salaries, suspension of payments. They seem to me outdated, untimely solutions.

”The initial idea was to start again in May, but there is no question that we will succeed.