Joe Cole believes the Premier League season should be scrapped if it cannot be finished – even if it means his former club Liverpool are denied the title.
The ex-England playmaker, who won three Premier League titles with Chelsea from 2003-2010, believes the idea of finishing the remaining matches in the summer is unrealistic as the outbreak of coronavirus continues to wreak havoc on the world.
Speaking to the Daily Star, Cole said: “Obviously we need to finish the season as soon as we can, if we’re allowed to. That would be ideal.
“If we can’t finish the season, and it’s getting close to the following season, the only situation which I think is fair is to just restart it.”
Jurgen Klopp’s men are just six points away from being crowned champions for the first time in three decades, with an all-but-insurmountable 25 points separating the Reds and second-placed Man City.
But Cole, who scored three goals in 26 league appearances for Liverpool from 2010 to 2013, believes it would not be fair to cut the season short before it’s finished.
He added: “Everyone’s tribal. Everyone wants what’s best for their clubs. But unless you do a blanket thing for everyone, it’s going to have knock-on effects.
“In my opinion, that’s the only solution. Restart from scratch if we cannot finish the league.
“I’m sure there are more intelligent people than me coming up with solutions but we’re in a situation as a country where we have to stick together.
“Everyone in the football world needs to understand that as well. Finishing a 100m race at 70m leaves a lot of arguments.
“We’ve seen so many times in sport – it throws up so many surprises, doesn’t it? You can never be sure what’s going to happen.
“We’re in a situation where people have to be selfless in their lives and in football we need to lead the way.
“It’s going to benefit some clubs and others are going to be very upset but bigger things than football are at stake. It’s people’s lives and livelihoods.”
