Let's assume football isn't back until 2021: which players will be the most affected by this?

[Fortitude]

The likelihood of football coming back at all during 2020 is questionable; if it's back up and running in full by the start of 2021, things will have gone well.

Anyway, in the interim, players who were in the form of their lives or considering retirement have both been knocked for six. I'm guessing those were going to retire will bow out, mostly with no fanfare or ceremony whilst some players who were on the up are going to have to find that form again.

I'd say there's a third grouping, also: those hitting the traditional peak years for a footballer - generally the 27-29/30 grouping - who are going to have a chunk of that lopped off when all is said and done.

In some ways, this is similar to the players who had their legacies scrambled either side of WWII, but should not logically last almost half a decade.

Which players come to mind for you in the aforementioned categories? I think those in the supposed peak years for a footballer will be the worst off as unlike those on the up, they're not getting a chance of that time back and can only hope for an extended window in terms of their body and its capability, whilst those on the brink of retirement have at least played out their career already even if they don't get the traditional send off. There will also be players - just as with the Olympics - who will not get their last hurrah of a major because June/July 2021 is just a stretch too far for them

 

[LInkash]

Our rivals - Liverpool front three and de Bruyne come to mind, losing a peak year and just as they were on track for the greatest achievements of their careers.

 

[horsechoker]

Pogba, he's in his prime and he would lose close to 2 years of his career, he'd still be in his prime.

Matic and Mata would be getting on. Lingard will turn 22.

 

[Sandikan]

Lingard will get to stay as a United player an extra year!

 

[Uniquim]

Unless we decide to keep him, I think Odion Ighalo. He finally got his dream move to Manchester United, clearly loving it here, played a few games, scored a few goals, and then the whole season gets interrupted just a the team started winning. Could see him scoring a few more vital games as we overtook Chelsea to claim 4th if the season didn't come to a halt.

If football isn't back until 2021, and we didn't retain him, he'd be back in China at 31 years old. Could be that someone else would want to take a punt after seeing his 8 United games though.

 

[pascell]

Youngsters as they won't naturally develop their game and players who are about to enter their decline.

 

[Skills]

Pogba, he's in his prime and he would lose close to 2 years of his career, he'd still be in his prime.

Matic and Mata would be getting on. Lingard will turn 22.

Might screw us over more. One of the motivations for players to re-sign is that they don't want to injure themselves in the final year of their contract. If there's no football, he's pretty safe from the risk of injury.

And if there's no football next year anyway, there's no reason for his suitors to pay us a fee to take him now.

 

[Rasendori]

The acquisition of Braithwaite from Barcelona. It is noteworthy that Barca's last game was the first time the aforementioned was included in the starting berth. Suarez in normal circumstances would have been expected to have recovered (from knee surgery) at some point next month.

Ilicic from Atlanta was in imperious form, both domestically and on the European stage.

Di Maria has had his best season at PSG since Zlatan's final season. Whilst some may make a good point that a player of his quality will have relatively no difficulty in replicating his performances, it i worth bearing in mind the change to his typical routine will have on him mentally.

Naturally most players would be annoyed. I would say all, but then someone like Demiral who experienced a cruciate ligament structure will now have the opportunity to get games before the Euros. Demiral who according to most Juve fans was doing significantly better than De Ligt albeit in a small sample of games. In any case, the player I was thinking of is De Bruyne. 28 in his prime years, now although that's not to say a player in his 30s is finished so to speak. Certainly not, I can see a player of his qualities continuing to make an impact in his mid thirties. What will be particularly disappointing for him is that City will likely have a CL ban, and his actions in the past have suggested he's a very ambitious man. In this case, this virus will be particularly bitter for him.

Edmond Tapsoba was on an upwards trajectory for Bayern Leverkusen. Whether he'll be able to recapture his form remains to be seen. Gabriel Magalhães was doing exceedingly well at Lille. I was personally anticipating to see how Victor Oshimen would fare with Weah on the brink of returning.

Furthermore, I'd imagine those on the final years on their contract will be disappointed. Particularly those who were deliberately running out the years of their contract. This is under the assumption that each player will have another year added to their contract.

 

[Brightonian]

The central premise of this thread is highly unlikely. I would almost guarantee teams will be back playing some kind of football by mid-autumn if not before.

 

[Lentwood]

From a selfish point of view, it would be probably end up being good for Utd.

There aren’t many clubs who can sustain themselves without Match Day revenue and TV money. I’d imagine we would be able to shave a significant percentage off the price of our transfer targets when the window does reopen

Player-wise, it will be great for Rashford and Kane who would probably have struggled to make the Euro’s.

 

[baskinginthesun]

On the other side, I feel some players could extend their careers just a bit further. This gives them a proper rest and also any annoying, manageable injuries they had, now have the chance to fully heal and recover. This is great for someone like Pogba, who would have probably played some football while in the recovery phase and possibly further injuring it. This gives him time to make sure his ankle is properly healed.

The downside is. The players could come back to training in worse shape than they do after their summer holidays. The fact that they are sitting around with limited fitness routines for now means they have probably dropped a few more levels than normal. The pre-season may need to be bit longer just to make sure everyone is match fit. Or, when football does restart the first few matches are going to be extremely sluggish.

 

[P-Nut]

For players like Eriksen who seem to have been running out of gas of late this break could be just what they need. 6 months with no games and proper time to get their bodies back to how they should be could give them another couple of years added on to their careers.

 

[Lentwood]

The central premise of this thread is highly unlikely. I would almost guarantee teams will be back playing some kind of football by mid-autumn if not before.

Why is it unlikely? We might be able to get corona under control but we still have no vaccine or cure. The minute people start gathering again we risk a second wave. We’re already staring down the barrel of a financial crisis on an unprecedented scale. Imagine if we experience a second, third and fourth wave!

Even if we play behind close doors, how do you protect the players? They would have to train and travel. That’s a squad plus the development teams plus the coaches, analysts, management, day-to-day staff etc...all mingling and exposing each other and their families. What if a star player had a sick or elderly relative/partner at home and didn’t want to take the risk?

 

[InterFan1998]

Josip Ilicic.

 

[Sandikan]

Any player who was odds on for a big move this summer.
This could totally derail it, as even amongst ludicrously rich and greedy clubs there will surely be some sort of caution at wellying huge fees out.

And when would any next window be anyway?

 

[Brightonian]

Why is it unlikely? We might be able to get corona under control but we still have no vaccine or cure. The minute people start gathering again we risk a second wave. We’re already staring down the barrel of a financial crisis on an unprecedented scale. Imagine if we experience a second, third and fourth wave!

Even if we play behind close doors, how do you protect the players? They would have to train and travel. That’s a squad plus the development teams plus the coaches, analysts, management, day-to-day staff etc...all mingling and exposing each other and their families. What if a star player had a sick or elderly relative/partner at home and didn’t want to take the risk?

For the sake of argument, let's talk about some kind of behind closed doors set-up. Of course, it will be logistically complicated. But by the autumn testing will be widely available and a regular part of life, so it will be possible to pre-test the relatively small number of people required to manage and screen a football game. Everyone involved will be able to observe strict distancing except for the players on the pitch, who will all have been checked and tested negative. It's complicated, yes, but it is possible, and that's really the only thing we need to know to be sure that they will do it.

That's because if football is still not being played by, say, mid-October, the industry will collapse. It is not financially healthy, and cannot sustain total indefinite shutdown. Clubs will start to drop like flies. There may be disagreement between different stakeholders at the moment - players, clubs, governing bodies - but all of these groups will ultimately do anything to prevent the total collapse of their industry. The government will also not countenance it, for economic and cultural reasons and for the sake of national morale, and will make the necessary allowances to keep it going in some form.

EDIT: Sorry, by the way, I realise this is not the point of the thread and I am derailing somewhat. I'll leave it there.

 

[Rozay]

I will assume no such thing!
But to (sort of), answer the question, my answer is ‘me’.

Feck knows what that would mean for David Silva either.

 

[TheReligion]

In answer to the OPs question; the whole Liverpool squad

 

[LawCharltonBest]

Why would Football not be back until 2021? I swear some people love to be negative.

 

[RalphMilneSuperstar]

Bruno Fernandes

 

[Nicoseth]

It'll be back long before then.

 

[GifLord]

Lukaku. Definitely Lukaku

 

[Maluco]

In answer to the OPs question; the whole Liverpool squad

I don’t know about this, they were running on fumes near the end there. Just the first few cracks were starting to appear.

If they get their PL title, this could be a much needed rest after an intense few years.

They could potentially come back refreshed and ready to start over again.

 

[TheReligion]

I don’t know about this, they were running on fumes near the end there. Just the first few cracks were starting to appear.

If they get their PL title, this could be a much needed rest after an intense few years.

They could potentially come back refreshed and ready to start over again.

I meant as they'll win feck all

 

[Finn MacCool]

From a purely physical perspective with so much football being crammed into the last few years this break could be a blessing in disguise in terms of the freshness of the players.

Of course that could be offset by the emotional effects of the crisis especially for players who lose family or friends. Sports psychologists and club psychotherapists could be very busy dealing with fall out.

 

[VanKenny]

Messi. He isnt getting any younger and was top of the league, playing for CL and Barcelona had just changed managers which was playing a new refreshing system.

 

[Dante]

Anyone bought in January.

This fallow period will give them a chance to bond with their new teammates (over the internet) and get more used to their surroundings. And when football resumes, it will require another pre-season. That can only benefit anyone who hasn't had one before.

 

[Josh 76]

I don’t know about this, they were running on fumes near the end there. Just the first few cracks were starting to appear.

If they get their PL title, this could be a much needed rest after an intense few years.

They could potentially come back refreshed and ready to start over again.

Having a year out of football is unprecedented for a whole team. All their players will be a year older, most closer to 30. They were on an amazing run, surely this will effect Liverpool more than any other team.

 

[Fortitude]

You have to wonder how those in reserve and youth football will fare losing a portion of their formative development. Perhaps that time gets tacked on to the end of their careers and we'll see a wave of 'prolonged' careers amongst that age group on the other side?

Fair point about Liverpool, also, as they have had two seasons at the top, and if we go by the supposed 3 seasons before a team loses a bit of its edge and needs refreshing, they've been way laid right in the middle of their prime. Begs the question of blanket reinvigoration with this enforced break, or if that's that for them as a side at the very peak of their powers.

Messi and Ronaldo both will have 'what could have been during that time' written into their legacies, too I should imagine, especially if they don't come back as the players they left as.

@Gio or anyone else in the sports science field: how will clubs manage the players in terms of getting them back to match form? A normal off-season is around 5-6 weeks, in which time, not much damage can be done even by undisciplined players who go off and have a good summer. Nothing a few extra days/weeks in camp won't fix - as we see each August - but with literal months of activity well below professional levels, doesn't the physiological aspect have to be factored in lest even players in 'good' shape who have looked after themselves etc. break down with muscle pulls and tears?

 

[RedStarUnited]

Messi. He isnt getting any younger and was top of the league, playing for CL and Barcelona had just changed managers which was playing a new refreshing system.

On the flip side, Barcelona regain Suarez for the rest of the league and CL ties.

 

[Gio]

@Gio or anyone else in the sports science field: how will clubs manage the players in terms of getting them back to match form? A normal off-season is around 5-6 weeks, in which time, not much damage can be done even by undisciplined players who go off and have a good summer. Nothing a few extra days/weeks in camp won't fix - as we see each August - but with literal months of activity well below professional levels, doesn't the physiological aspect have to be factored in lest even players in 'good' shape who have looked after themselves etc. break down with muscle pulls and tears?

It's unchartered waters across all sports. Anyone responsible for organising a training programme for elite athletes right now is having to develop a new set of rules. It's impossible to programme anything when there is such a variation between potential return dates to competition. There's also a psychological challenge for athletes. Without a goal in mind, motivation will be difficult as they do not know what they are training for. All of those who were planning to take part in this year's Olympics are now in limbo, unsure whether to build up to some theoretical races at the end of the summer season, or kick off a 16-month programme towards the 2021 games.

In football all teams have put their players into maintenance mode to carry out individual training programmes. They will all still be in good shape and could return to action quite quickly. They should be able to cover the majority of the physical requirements from home, given the space well-paid professionals should be able to access. I don't see this as such a big issue, provided they are disciplined. Plenty of individual sport athletes train routinely under such conditions and get their body into better physical shape than many footballers.

But Brighton have just decided to stop and give them time off and bring them back in May to build up from there. That approach of basically pulling forward the pre-season break to now seems sensible because we will be months away from a return to action. It allows players to press the psychological reset button and come back relatively mentally refreshed in a few weeks time. I can see a few teams copying them shortly. They will need at least 2-3 weeks of collective training on a pitch to transition their bodies into the types of demands placed on them in a full-pitch game. There may be a transitional step in there too if you look at how Dortmund and Bayern are pulling players back into the fold, on a paired or small groups basis. That also depends how that is received socially within different countries where there are different levels of lockdown in place.

 

[Fortitude]

Cheers @Gio

Insightful post.