Chelsea manager Frank Lampard believes clubs should punish players who break Covid-19 rules following a spate of high-profile incidents across the Premier League.
Over Christmas, players from Tottenham, Manchester City, West Ham, Crystal Palace and Fulham were all caught across the Christmas period flouting lockdown protocols, as positive tests within the league and the country as a whole continued to climb.
None were publicly punished by their clubs with Palace manager Roy Hodgson naming Luka Milivojevic captain for a Premier League match after he was pictured partying on New Year’s Eve with Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic.
Man City manager Pep Guardiola including Benjamin Mendy in his squad after the left-back had hosted a New Year’s Eve party with the club then recording a number of positive tests in the camp.
That has been against the backdrop of alarming rises in infections, patient numbers and deaths across the United Kingdom, which has led to the discussion over whether football should be played at all during the pandemic.
“I am not sure where the responsibility lies between the clubs or the FA,” Lampard said, ahead of Sunday’s FA Cup third round tie against League Two Morecambe.
“My feeling is clubs should have in-house policies to deal with it which is probably guided by the Premier League and the FA.
“If people break the sanctions then they should clearly be punished because we are asking every person in the UK to follow rules and the players have to follow similar rules and within the workplace to align with the FA rules and regulations.”
On Friday, the Premier League issued fresh directives to its 20 clubs, banning shirt swapping, handshakes and hugging before, during and after matches and threatened to punish offenders.
Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce has joined West Brom’s Sam Allardyce in calling for a temporary break in the season, questioning whether it was morally right to play on with the nation in lockdown.
