West Ham’s Moyes says game must ‘reset’ after coronavirus crisis

West Ham United manager David Moyes has said the financial difficulties facing clubs amid the COVID-19 pandemic could prompt a rethink of the way they operate.

Football in England was suspended indefinitely last month due to the new coronavirus and West Ham are among several Premier League teams to announce player wage deferrals to help their clubs cope with the financial impact.

Southampton, Watford and Sheffield United had also deferred player wages while Arsenal said their players and coaching staff had agreed to accept a 12.5% pay cut.

“I hope we will all look back and think: ‘Maybe we were indulging too much.

“The people who run football clubs have got to look and say: ‘If anything like this happened again in the future, would we be able to survive and get through it?’

“I’m hoping it might help football reset itself when we start up again. We have to make sure that all football clubs are saved. There is no way any club can go under,’” Moyes told reporters in a video conference.

Moyes, 56, who had been volunteering by delivering fruit and vegetables during the lockdown, said clubs in the upper tiers of the game had a duty to “do the right things”.

“We have lots of money coming in from different providers. And from that point of view, we have to make sure we do the right things.

“We have to make sure the players are protected as well,” Moyes added.