Premier League: Might as well use VR to end remainder of the season

By the time all the rules of the Premier League’s “Project Restart” is finalised, we might as well be playing either, one-on-one football or switch to VR, and conclude the campaign in solo isolation.

Germany has declared May 16 as their date to return back to action. The DFL has been given full permission to resume the 2019-2020 campaign by the government, whenever they feel fit.

The Premier League’s “Project Restart” appears to be a small distance away because of the news coming from European neighbours, Germany. The Premier League talks have been ongoing and productive.

More from Premier League

New rules and regulations are being installed to ensure the safety of players, managers, and matchday staff, but some of the rules seem quite far-fetched, it is actually taking away some of the integrity out of the game.

"The Premier League will ban team celebrations, shirt-swapping and spitting when matches resume.Police told clubs to “get a grip” and stop complaining when more than 30,000 had lost their lives to coronavirus. The Football Association stood ready to block any attempt to scrap relegation. Fears emerged that players would reject Bundesliga-style pre-season quarantines."

Taken away from the game we love

There have been divided opinions on the situation, much like the one regarding lockdown and easing stay at home orders in England, as well as other locations. This is why talks have intensified on English football’s rebirth into the world again.

The first debate is regarding teams and them wanting to play home and away games. If not, neutral venues will be selected for all remaining games to be played out. COVID-19 tests will be carried out before and after games. Adding to the high testing rate, teams will be required to stay in quarantine away from home, including their families.

Now talks of no spitting, no shirt swapping, and no celebrations are being put in place. Breaking down the above-mentioned rules already displays hardship in trying to carry them out.

Neutral venue – Nobody cares back at home, where all of us will be viewing a game or the team we support. No fans? No point. Every fixture is going to sound like a practice match anyway
No spitting – Very in favour of this rule but how do you not sling a piece of saliva after running a mini 100m spit from one of the pitch to the other. Should you be swallowing it? We were advised not to swallow our spit as a preaction. How is this not going against the coronavirus protocol?
No swapping shirts – This just cuts sportsmanship out completely… End of discussion.
No celebrations – An air five for you, and for you, and for you… A wink, a fist pump, a humble show of appreciation is what they asking for. How are you going to celebrate a 40-yard screamer? Tweet it?

The latter two really does steal the game’s integrity. But hey, looking on the bright side of things, you could be stuck playing rugby. With their change of rules, you could possibly create a new sport.

"Plans are being drawn up for rugby union to be played without scrummaging, tackling and mauling next season to increase the likelihood of some form of the game returning if the Covid-19 lockdown is eased. (Via: The Telegraph)"

The growth of the Premier League’s “Project Restart” has been a fun and peculiar watch. What comes next, nobody knows. Other reports suggest around 50 Premier League stars are unwilling and troubled about restarting football.

The VR solution that might as well take place

At this rate and how intense rules are at the moment, players might not even be allowed to play each other on the same pitch. Each team will be asked to play at their own venue (eradicating the home and away problem) with a virtual reality headset.

This is practically what the ask sounds like from the FA. If you need to cut out this much of the game, don’t play and just be patient for safer days. A later date never hurt anybody and will surely save all the trouble.