Thursday’s announcement that English Premier League football clubs may resume contact training, with players allowed to breach the two-metre social distancing rule in order to return to more realistic playing scenarios, has further fuelled debate over where the priorities of the government and sports governing bodies truly lie. Whilst lockdown measures around the UK are being slowly lifted, families, friends, and partners living apart still remain unable to come within a two-metre distance of each other, whether that be to embrace, or to simply carry out a conversation with a greater degree of privacy.

Although this may be the “new normal” for the general public, the same measures do not apply fully to those playing professional football at the top of the English game. Within training players will now be allowed to tackle and compete in aerial duels. However, continuous contact between groups will be minimised through the use of GPS tracking, with an aim of keeping this contact below a fifteen-minute limit. Set-pieces will be practiced regularly, and if the return of the Bundesliga is anything to go by, social distancing will not prevent the jostling and grappling witnessed at corners and free kicks.

It must be understood that the reintroduction of contact training is vital to allow for the return of competitive professional sport, a move that was given the go-ahead for June 1st.

But should sport really be a priority? The benefits of the return of sport have been cited by the government as lifting the spirits of the country and boosting mental health. This has led to questions being raised about the current guidance that applies to the rest of the population. Surely being close to a loved-one or a quick embrace would generate those same emotional benefits, and would, if kept to a limit of fifteen minutes, allow for no greater viral spread than in football training. This is no doubt a question that will continue to be raised over the course of the next few weeks as we see football, and other competitive sports such as rugby and cricket, returning to our screens.

Personally, as a Liverpool fan and with Liverpool set to win their first league title in thirty years, I do wish to see the return of competitive football and the conclusion of the 19/20 season. Would I choose this over being able to hug my partner, parents, or grandparents? In case they happen to be reading (hello!), I am going to go with the safe option of no. In all seriousness, I do truly mean that. For me, the wish to see those I love in as normal a way as possible far outweighs the desire to watch a game of football – even if it is one in which Liverpool win the league.