England

MANCHESTER, England — The players union representing Premier League footballers has questioned the league's call for a 30 percent player wage reduction amid the coronavirus crisis, saying it would reduce tax revenue for the National Health Service.

The stance taken by the union raises the prospect of a damaging public wrangle over the salaries of some of the best paid footballers in the world at a time when Britain is facing a major public health crisis.

Premier League leaders Liverpool have furloughed some of their non-playing staff due to the COVID-19 pandemic and are holding talks about the prospect of salary deductions for players and senior staff, the club said on Saturday.

Liverpool added on their website that the furloughed staff would continue to receive 100 percent of their salaries.

The Premier League has said its clubs will consult with their players over a proposed 30 percent reduction in wages and the suspended season would only resume when it was "safe and appropriate."

The league accepted that a previous target of returning to action in early May would not now happen and said on Friday it was keeping the restart date under "constant review."

While there has been speculation about a reduced season or even abandoning this campaign, the league said it remained their aim to complete all remaining domestic league and cup matches.

It began simply enough. On Monday, former javelin thrower and Cheltenham Town youth footballer James Campbell — bored inside his house — sent out a simple photo of his modest backyard along with a promise that he’d run a marathon in it if he could get 10K retweets.

10,000 retweets & I’ll run a marathon in my back garden. It’s about 6 metres long pic.twitter.com/birrnVQ93Y

MANCHESTER, England — Tottenham Hotspur's decision to impose a 20 percent wage reduction on 550 non-playing staff due to the impact of the coronavirus has prompted increased pressure on Premier League players to take a pay cut or a deferral of wages.

The Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) are in talks with the Premier League over how best to deal with the current suspension of competition, but the moves by some clubs to use the government's furlough scheme has prompted sharp criticism.

Some clarity on how soccer leagues in Europe plan to complete seasons that have been put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic is expected this week but there is likely to be a mixed bag of solutions with countries tugging in different directions.

Meetings set for the next few days will study how to resume the suspended campaigns, even though it will be difficult to come up with a definitive roadmap while the continent remains in the grip of the fast-spreading virus.

Aston Villa star and captain Jack Grealish was in the news for all the wrong reasons this past weekend. 

Shortly after posting a video online urging people to follow the government's guidelines to stay at home to prevent the spread of COVID-19, pictures emerged of Grealish wearing two different shoes after leaving a party at a friend's house early in the morning. 

Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan says it would only be "fair" for rivals Liverpool to be awarded the English Premier League trophy if the season cannot be completed due to the coronavirus outbreak. 

Gundogan told German broadcaster ZDF that Liverpool deserved to be crowned champions given their massive 25-point lead over second-placed City, the current holders, which has left them just two wins away from the title.