Football and the Coronavirus

Soldato
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As a Liverpool supporter I think it's disgusting that the club is using the gov scheme it has imo no need to.

Isn't the point of the scheme for struggling business. We are not a struggling club.
 
Don
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There's so many other businesses and industries that generate far more money that don't get 1% of the criticism that footballers and clubs get but football has an incredible way of shooting itself in the foot sometimes. The decision by Liverpool is just unnecessary - they're going to save less than £500k per month. They've seen the **** Spurs got and thought they'd be clever and not furlough all staff and they'd top up the difference and that they'd get away with it. You'd hope other clubs will see the flack that Liverpool have got and won't do this now but then again they might think that Liverpool have taken the sting out of any criticism that will come their way and do it too.

And now we've got a very public battle between the PL and PFA over wage cuts and deferrals.
 
Soldato
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There's so many other businesses and industries that generate far more money that don't get 1% of the criticism that footballers and clubs get but football has an incredible way of shooting itself in the foot sometimes. The decision by Liverpool is just unnecessary - they're going to save less than £500k per month. They've seen the **** Spurs got and thought they'd be clever and not furlough all staff and they'd top up the difference and that they'd get away with it. You'd hope other clubs will see the flack that Liverpool have got and won't do this now but then again they might think that Liverpool have taken the sting out of any criticism that will come their way and do it too.

And now we've got a very public battle between the PL and PFA over wage cuts and deferrals.

True and people forget players are just employees at the end of the day and they didn't decide on wage structure or lack there off.

As much as I love Liverpool and football in general I've said for years there all paid far too much imo.

Then again as you said earlier I don't help by supporting and buying into the sport myself.

But clubs doing this doesn't help get football out of the media it just draws all the bad press to us.

The owners have buckled under pressure in the past from fans so there is a chance they could reverse this.

In regards to players well again I go back to my personal view of there all over paid, I'd also arque that they would surely have earned enough money to go by least few months with no pay anyway at rate they earn cash.

Not that they should as again still have familys. The only thing from a football perspective id like to see change is a wage cap being brought on but I suspect it's impossible to do now.

I know this announcement is about none playing staff but I just felt I had to also add above!
 
Caporegime
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In a perfect world the PFA would tell the PL to **** off and we might finally get a fairer game again. The TV money involved for just a single set of fixtures is madness.

Liverpools decision today is bewildering but I can’t say I’m surprised. The owners have saved themselves some pocket change and they don’t care if it’s the British public who’ll have to pay it back in taxes.
 
Man of Honour
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Not a good look for Liverpool, but I'm surprised the Glazers haven't happily done the same.

At least their own fans are calling them out on it, good to see.
 
Don
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The maddest thing is that they made a very similar mistake 5(?) years ago when they tweaked ticket prices and it backfired spectacularly then too. Iirc the changes they made would have increased overall revenue by approx £1m but the new £77 ticket, even though it was offset by reductions in other prices, lead to a mass walkout on the 77th minute. Overall FSG haven't done too much wrong and for the past 5 years at least have done almost everything right but this was such a needless and stupid mistake to make. Of all the City's in the UK, Liverpool would be the most likely to react the way supporters have. Hopefully, like the £77 ticket, the reaction will lead to a rethink.
 
Soldato
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The maddest thing is that they made a very similar mistake 5(?) years ago when they tweaked ticket prices and it backfired spectacularly then too. Iirc the changes they made would have increased overall revenue by approx £1m but the new £77 ticket, even though it was offset by reductions in other prices, lead to a mass walkout on the 77th minute. Overall FSG haven't done too much wrong and for the past 5 years at least have done almost everything right but this was such a needless and stupid mistake to make. Of all the City's in the UK, Liverpool would be the most likely to react the way supporters have. Hopefully, like the £77 ticket, the reaction will lead to a rethink.
The ticket thing didn't take them long at all to back track on its that situation which makes me thing they will rethink
 
Soldato
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What I find baffling is when you hear the players talk about
'backed into a corner,we have been discussing what to do since this started' etc

How hard would it be to get together say all players at one club and at least say we will pay the wages of the non playing staff ?
Or make charitable donations to the NHS ...

As a football fan I feel ashamed at the moment.
I pray my club Sheffield United has the balls to do something more positive but I'm not holding my breath.
 
Soldato
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Can we all just agree, that at this moment in time, all players are as useless and worth absolutely nothing. Without a game, what is their purpose?!

Pretty much everyone still with a job to do running the country, business, infrastructure, supply lines, retail etc are actually worth more than anything Paul Pogba can contribute at this moment in time. Slightly bad example as he's picked up millions doing nob all this season - but now they are all pretty much getting obscene wages for doing NOTHING. They don't have a job, and won't for months yet.

I've still got to work for my pitiful monthly salary. If I didn't I'd be forced to accept a 20% reduction and face major insecurity in the future, along with all these non-playing staff clubs are treating horribly.
 
Soldato
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So based on the 19/20 players payroll at Liverpool ( 24 player squad ) the average salary per player is around 7.4 M pounds , I’m sure this will be a similar story with the other top tier clubs that put staff into furlough as well .
https://www.spotrac.com/epl/liverpool-f.c/payroll/

You just put or all your non playing staff on 80% salary paid for by the government. Absolute aholes all of you , your as bad as the who live of the state that won’t work , yes I just threw you into that category. I’m absolutely speechless..

And yes there other scumbags around as well , Branson , Green , Ashley. It were in the sports forum here .
 
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Soldato
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Can we all just agree, that at this moment in time, all players are as useless and worth absolutely nothing. Without a game, what is their purpose?!

Pretty much everyone still with a job to do running the country, business, infrastructure, supply lines, retail etc are actually worth more than anything Paul Pogba can contribute at this moment in time. Slightly bad example as he's picked up millions doing nob all this season - but now they are all pretty much getting obscene wages for doing NOTHING. They don't have a job, and won't for months yet.

I've still got to work for my pitiful monthly salary. If I didn't I'd be forced to accept a 20% reduction and face major insecurity in the future, along with all these non-playing staff clubs are treating horribly.
You say that but as soon as the season resumes your going to re-subscribe to bt and sky again putting money into these ueseless players pockets again
 
Soldato
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I don't and won't. I generally sit at my local to watch games, so contribute in some way I suppose.

That is like saying players become worthless in offseason, it's nonsense. They're insanely valuable assets to clubs.

That's their "annual leave". They aren't working, but everyone is deserving of some time off like most employees. I'm not arguing that footballers don't work incredibly hard and are insanely skilled at what they do - just at this time they are worth nothing to any one, and the game could potentially not return as we know it for 6 months+ how long will they drag this out and get millions for nothing? They are only assets if what they do is worth something - currently there is no market for footballers.

We can't treat everything as if the status quo of when those contracts were signed is just around the corner. How long will these players be paid for until we say it's been too long?
 
Soldato
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As Baz pointed out a few days ago cutting the players wages will only harm the country in less tax generated, this link states that should a 30% reduction occur then it would mean £500m less paid to players (this will be straight into directors/owners pockets and not be given to other staff) which is approx £200m less tax into the countries coffers.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52168692

So before we all start vilifying the players we should be looking at the owners as it's them being cheap not the players, as I understand many of the players already donate millions of pounds a year to charities and then you've seen that Jordan Henderson is trying to rally other captains to do more.

I do think it's obscene the money the players are paid in this day and age but the buck stops firmly at the feet of club owners/directors on this issue in my eyes.
 
Soldato
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I don't and won't. I generally sit at my local to watch games, so contribute in some way I suppose.



That's their "annual leave". They aren't working, but everyone is deserving of some time off like most employees. I'm not arguing that footballers don't work incredibly hard and are insanely skilled at what they do - just at this time they are worth nothing to any one, and the game could potentially not return as we know it for 6 months+ how long will they drag this out and get millions for nothing?
fair enough.

i just see it in both sides of the coin.

This is a very unique situation we have here where this type of scenario has never been thought of, ie what happens if players are unable to train and play because of a world wide shutdown from a pandemic or war?

It is not illegal for pogba to keep earning 300k a week sitting at home and you cannot blame him for that.
 
Soldato
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As Baz pointed out a few days ago cutting the players wages will only harm the country in less tax generated, this link states that should a 30% reduction occur then it would mean £500m less paid to players (this will be straight into directors/owners pockets and not be given to other staff) which is approx £200m less tax into the countries coffers.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52168692

So before we all start vilifying the players we should be looking at the owners as it's them being cheap not the players, as I understand many of the players already donate millions of pounds a year to charities and then you've seen that Jordan Henderson is trying to rally other captains to do more.

I do think it's obscene the money the players are paid in this day and age but the buck stops firmly at the feet of club owners/directors on this issue in my eyes.
this^

It is the big clubs that should be paying the staff members there wages. You cannot blame the players when most already contribute even before this mess
 
Soldato
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If the players were to have their tax% increased by a couple of % that would cover lots of nurses wages, all the non-playing staff being put on furlough through further contribution to the national budget (if there even is one any more after all this - I'm dreading to see what austerity mk.2 will look like).

Also, I don't buy the "players contribute already" argument. In this day and age it's clearly done for public image or guilt more than anything. I'm incredibly sceptical on this - it's hard to argue against donating to a children's hospital or something, which is why it's so powerful. It benefits both parties unless done in a very low key manner.

I just can't see how players can sit by though when their clubs are furloughing non-playing staff. That is wrong and the players/PFA should be ashamed of their clubs, themselves and the EPL for allowing this to start to happen. If Juventus can do it, then the EPL clubs can and should.
 
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