Troy Deeney: Family’s health more important than Premier League’s ‘Project Restart’
Deeney has said that he does not support a quick restart
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Watford skipper Troy Deeney says he will put his family’s health before football and has raised concerns about the Premier League’s plans to restart the campaign disrupted by COVID-19.
The 31-year-old was part of a conference call this week with the Professional Footballers Association, Premier League chiefs and the government on safety measures surrounding Project Restart, which envisages a return to play in June.
Those plans were given a boost on Thursday when Britain’s Culture and Sport secretary Oliver Dowden said the government was “opening the door” for football to return next month but Deeney said he was against a quick restart.
“I’m not even talking about football at the moment -- I’m talking about my family’s health. If I feel that I’m not looking after my family, then I’m not going to do it. I’m not going to put my family at risk,” Deeney said on Instagram.
“What are they going to do, take money off me? I’ve been broke before so it doesn’t bother me.
“They’re talking about not playing in front of fans until 2021. So if it’s not safe enough for fans to be inside a stadium why should it be safe for players to be in there?”
More than 33,000 people have died in the United Kingdom due to the virus. Reuters
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments