The Premier League has given it’s clubs approval to stage friendlies ahead of the planned June 17 restart but a number of strict guidelines remain in place.
Clubs in the top flight have requested permission to face other teams in preparation for the resumption of the 2019/20 season, which has now been accepted - although strict guidelines have been issued.
No team can travel more than 90 minutes for a match and players must travel in their own cars, while members of coaching staff will officiate the matches as referees will not be allowed.
Matches can either be played inside stadiums or at training grounds, which would be risk assessed before matches, and those involved would have had to have a negative result from coronavirus testing.
Teams are now expected to organise friendlies for the forthcoming weekend and we understand that Leicester City will host Aston Villa at the King Power Stadium as one of those matches.
Championship sides have already received requests to play games against Premier League opposition, and must follow the same guidelines. Full contact training for Championship clubs was approved on Monday evening.
Liverpool and West Ham have both held training sessions in their stadiums this week, with Jurgen Klopp’s side involved in a short 11 vs 11 match against one another.
It is not yet clear whether Manchester United or Manchester City intend to take advantage of the option to participate in friendlies before the campaign resumes.
