Former Tottenham Hotspur director of football, Damien Comolli, believes that the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Premier League clubs cannot be underestimated.
Footballing action has been suspended for almost two months in the UK due to the spread of COVID-19 and there is no confirmation yet as to when the season will resume.
The Premier League is already said to be contemplating the idea of playing next season behind closed doors (Sky Sports).
Football Insider claims that Tottenham will be one of the worst-hit clubs in that scenario with the North Londoners standing to lose over £100 million in matchday revenue.
Comolli believes that the financial impact of the crisis will affect the way clubs operate for many years to come.
Speaking to Sky Sports’ The Football Show (as relayed by talkSPORT), the Frenchman said: “We could see clubs collapsing and could also see clubs in the Premier League getting into big trouble because they have to pay for the financial damage and do not have the revenue to show for that.
“It’s difficult to anticipate what will happen and I don’t want to sound dramatic but it doesn’t look good.
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“When you see the match day revenue that Premier League clubs are already losing – they are huge numbers.
“I think everybody is talking about this season – but we have to remember that half of next season will be played behind closed doors so we are talking financial problems for the big clubs because they have the biggest stadiums and attendances.
“We are talking of losses which are north of 100 million pounds and the effect of this will be seen this season, next season and for years after that.”
Comolli also revealed that free agents might be valued more highly than any time in recent history when the transfer market reopens this summer, while players who are on long-contracts cannot expect a pay rise any time soon.
He added: “There are players at big clubs who are coming to the end of their contracts – like [Jan] Vertonghen or Thomas Meunier at PSG.
“Those players are becoming a really hot property now and they’re going to get big contracts that they might not have got if the virus didn’t hit us – but this is a very specific niche of players.
“On the other hand, the players who are not that type of player cannot expect a leap in remuneration.”
Spurs Web Opinion
As reports have suggested already, we could be in a particularly precarious situation this summer given the substantial debt that we owe on the stadium. So, any Spurs fans expecting the club to spend any considerable amount this summer will be disappointed. It is clear at this point that we will be looking to sign free agents or bargain deals.
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