One of the fears players had about the return to football is that they might get infected with the coronavirus by a teammate.
The Premier League had to show their stars data that proved that they don’t make contact long enough for them to contract the virus.
The Premier League has been working with data company STATSports to provide and monitor data about how much time players spend in contact with each other.
The initial report which was based on data before covid19 showed that players spent on average 3.3 seconds in close contact with each other.
This wasn’t enough to spread the virus, however, the good news this time is that that number has almost been halved.
The latest figures show that players have been spending on average 1.8 seconds in close proximity with each other in a major boost to Project Restart.
‘The early indications from what we’re seeing this week from working with the teams is that we’re seeing a substantial drop in the average incursion time,’ STATSports co-founder Sean O’Connor said as quoted in the Mail.
‘So going from 3.3 pre-Covid to 1.8 this week is the early numbers we’re seeing, and we expect that to maintain or even improve as we’re going on.
‘I suppose the obvious things that are changing in that are things like the longer durations, where they’re maybe having a water break, sat and chatting to each other or having certain technical or tactical drills where you’re in close proximity, or coaches stopping and breaking down drills.
‘So, that’s, I’d imagine, where we’re seeing a big chunk of the positive change coming.’
With the teams set to be put through a new set of rules when football returns, these numbers can only get better.
