It would be “inhumane” for players like
Watford forward Troy Deeney to face disciplinary action if they refuse
to return to action.
This comes amid calls to resume training as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreck havoc throughout the world.
Hornets skipper Deeney has said he will not return, citing concerns
over his five-month-old son who has breathing difficulties, and over the
Office of National Statistics data which shows black people and those
from other ethnic minorities suffer disproportionately from Covid-19
compared to white British people.
FIFPRO general secretary Jonas Baer-Hoffmann says Deeney’s concerns are legitimate.
“Troy Deeney has been in the news – the idea that a player who has
very legitimate concerns and wants to protect his family,” he said.
“If players are being pressured or being brought into the context of
disciplinary action for that, we feel it is very much unacceptable.
“The idea that someone may be potentially punished in such a pandemic
for trying to protect a family member’s health is inhumane and not
acceptable to us.”
There is no suggestion that Watford would seek to take action against
Deeney. The forward said on the Talk the Talk YouTube show earlier this
week: “We’re due back in this week. I’ve said I’m not going.
“Within the meeting (with the Premier League concerning return-to-training protocols) I asked very simple questions.
“For Black, Asian and mixed ethnicities they are four times more
likely to get the illness and twice as likely to have long-lasting
illness – is there any additional screening? Heart stuff to see if
anyone has a problem?
“I feel that should be addressed. I can’t get a haircut until
mid-July but I can go and get in a box with 19 people and jump for a
header? I don’t know how that works. No one could answer the questions –
not because they didn’t want to, because they didn’t have the
information.
“I just said ‘If you don’t know the information, why would I put myself at risk?’.
“It only takes one person to get infected. I don’t want to bring that
home – my son is five months old and he’s had breathing difficulties.
“I don’t want to come home and put him in more danger.”
Baer-Hoffmann warned players across the world to avoid signing
waivers before going back to training, describing them as “grossly
inappropriate” and potentially unenforceable from a legal standpoint.
“In its prospect for me it’s a very absurd idea, how a player may be
asked to indemnify the club from the consequences of a protocol on such a
disease which nobody knows the consequence of,” he said.
“Nobody knows whether these protocols will be applied correctly in the club environment – people may be making mistakes.
“To put that burden on the athlete is grossly inappropriate. I find
it questionable whether these waivers would have any legal base
ultimately if they were tested, but we would certainly discourage
players from signing anything like that.”
He said that in seven countries – Colombia, Honduras, Panama,
Paraguay, Uruguay, Botswana and Egypt – member unions were having to
deliver food packages to players in order for them to survive.
He also said in North Macedonia the national players’ union was
funding the cost of one round of testing themselves before players
return to training.
– TEAMtalk media
