The English Premier League on Tuesday announced additional sets of safety measures that the players and staff will have to adhere to when the competiton’s 2019-20 season resumes on Wednesday after a hiatus of more than three months due to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The guidelines that everyone involving with a match will have to follow have already been laid under the ‘Project Restart’ campaign. However, the Premier League officials revealed some extra security measures.
The league officials released three sets of guidelines – Before the match guidelines, During the match guidelines and After the match guidelines. In ‘Before the match’ guidelines, the involving personalities have been directed how to behave during their travel to and before their arrival at the match venue.
In ‘During the match’ guidelines, the players and club officials have been directed how to behave in the tunnels, dressing rooms and in the sidelines during the match.
“If there is only one tunnel available at the stadium, the away team’s players will enter the pitch first, followed by the home. At some stadiums, teams may be able to use separate tunnels to enter the pitch,” the Premier League said in an official statement.
“When they line up for the Premier League anthem, rather than form a straight line as before, players will now stand in a staggered formation.
“The traditional handshakes between the two teams will no longer happen and there will also be no handshakes at the coin toss,” the league added.
It has been informed that in the sidelines benches will be expanded so that the trainers and the staff can maintain social distancing during the match. For the people in the sidelines, zones will be marked out to guide them.
“This can include using seats next to the bench or reallocating seats to provide the required distance between people. For example, substitutes can be seated in designated areas in the stands behind the benches,” the Premier League’s official website read.
There will be no ball boys during the match and extra balls will be stationed across the perimetre of the ground for the players to get them if the playing ball goes out. Also, there will be a drinks break of a minute each in either half and the players will be allowed to drink only from their personal bottles.
About substitution, the new guidelines said, “Managers can make use of five substitutes during a match, instead of three, in line with the temporary law amendment made by the International Football Association Board.
“Teams can also have nine players on the bench rather than seven. But, one manager can make substitutions on only three occasions during a match, not including those made at half-time.
“Only three substitutes from one team are allowed to warm up at one time,” the statement read.
For players and managers, a different set of guidelines with a list of dos and donts have been issued.
Players and managers have been given these guidelines to reduce risk and maximise personal safety.
– Maintain distance during goal celebrations
– No handshakes
– No spitting or nose-clearing
– Use hand-sanitisers before and after every match
– Players should use their own water bottles
– Avoid mass confrontations with opponents or match officials
– Try to restrict interaction with opponents after the match