N’golo Kante is the latest player to say hokaai to team training over fears of Covid-19,
And it has sparked fears that the Premier League will be short on numbers when action is expected to resume next month.
The Chelsea midfielder was among a number of players throughout the Premier League to skip small-group training on Wednesday, which for many clubs was the first session back.
The 29-year-old World Cup winner did pitch for the Tuesday session, but after experiencing the new training conditions, said minute vir this.
After Watford captain Troy Deeney flagged questions about the UK’s Office for National Statistics data that black men and women are nearly twice as likely to die from Covid-19 as white people, more players of colour are fearing for their lives.
Blues manager Frank Lampard is said to be entirely supportive, while Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp told his players that he will not force any of his players to be at training if they feel unsafe.
SUPPORTIVE: Frank Lampard
The German tells SkySports: “It is the players’ choice and that is clear.
“I said, ‘You are here on free will. Usually you sign a contract and you have to be in when I tell you, but in this case if you don’t feel safe, you don’t have to be here’.
“There are no restrictions, no punishment, nothing. It’s their own decision and we respect that 100 percent.
“The boys are fine. We would never put anybody in danger to do what we want to do.
“Yes, we love football, yes, it’s our job, but it’s not more important than our lives or the lives of other people.”
RESPECT: Jurgen Klopp