SM
Sports Mole words bigger AMP 2
Sunday, January 26
Upcoming predictions and previews

Paul Barber: 'Fight against COVID has taken gigantic step back'

:Headline: Paul Barber: 'Fight against COVID has taken gigantic step back': ID:416517: from db_amp
Plans for the return of fans have been delayed after a surge in cases.
Paul Barber: 'Fight against COVID has taken gigantic step back'

Brighton chief executive Paul Barber believes football's efforts to fight back against coronavirus took "a gigantic step back" when plans to allow fans to return were put on ice.

The Premier League club staged a successful pilot in August as a scheduled limited reopening of stadia loomed, but a delay has since been ordered following a surge in cases.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live as the debate over whether top-flight clubs should help those below them in the football pyramid continues, Barber said: "Football is so important to the country.

"It's our national sport, it's a pastime for millions of people right the way from the top of the country to the bottom, and we're very, very disappointed that we've gone backwards.

"On August 29, we staged a pilot event. We had 2,500 people in our stadium for a friendly match against Chelsea, we put in place at great cost a huge amount of mitigation measures, as directed by the Sports Grounds Safety Authority and the Government. We complied with every single request.

Fans returned to the Amex Stadium – at a social distance – on August 29

"We got overwhelming support from the fans that were in the stadium saying how safe they felt, how enjoyable it was for them to be back in the stadium, and now we've taken a gigantic step back.

"We're being asked to support the football pyramid, but what we're asking for is to be able to sustain our own businesses to put us in a better position to be able to do that.

"We think we can do it safely, we think that we can do it with people's health absolutely paramount, but it's absolutely vital that we're able to sustain our own businesses if we are being asked to help others."

Barber pleaded with ministers to allow Premier League clubs to given the opportunity to sustain themselves by being allowed to open the turnstiles once again.

“We're being hit here from all directions. We're not being permitted to run our own businesses to generate our own income.”
- Paul Barber

He said: "We have not asked for any direct Government support, most Premier League clubs have totally avoided the use of the furlough scheme, we have not benefited from Government grants or loans.

"We have literally tried to stand on our own two feet while also helping the NHS and doing all we can in our community to help them through this very, very difficult time.

"We're being hit here from all directions. We're not being permitted to run our own businesses to generate our own income, we're supporting where we can the Government's messages and everything else they're asking us to do, but at the same time, we're also being asked to help others.

"It doesn't seem quite right. We're simply asking to be able to put our businesses back in some kind of shape where we can actually sustain local jobs and continue to support where we can."

amp_article__416517 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2020-09-30 09:43:01:
html db last update - 2020-09-30 09:43:01 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Coronavirus outbreak - Click here for more stories

Click here for more stories about Paul Barber

Click here for more stories about Brighton & Hove Albion

Share this article now:
Read more about Paul Barber Football
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool22165154213353
2Arsenal23138244212347
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2313553327644
4Manchester CityMan City23125647301741
5Newcastle UnitedNewcastle23125641271441
6Chelsea23117545301540
7Bournemouth23117541261540
8Aston Villa2310763435-137
9Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2381053531434
10Fulham238963431333
11Brentford2394104240231
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd2385102832-429
13Crystal Palace236982630-427
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham2376102844-1627
15Tottenham HotspurSpurs2373134637924
16Everton225891928-923
17Leicester CityLeicester2345142549-2417
18Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2344153252-2016
19Ipswich TownIpswich2337132147-2616
20Southampton2313191653-376
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .