Gary Neville doesn't "buy into need" to delay Premier League's Project Restart

Gary Neville says he doesn't "buy into the need" to delay the Premier League's Project Restart proposal any further than its current schedule.

Top-flight chiefs have been targeting a June 12 resumption date, but latest reports have suggested that could be pushed back by at least another fortnight over coronavirus fears.

Some players are still yet to return to their respective clubs for training, despite stringent testing being in place and training sessions currently limited to just five people at a time.

But Neville feels the current timeframe allows for adequate preparation before the campaign can get back under way.

"Two or three weeks on top of the fitness work they've been doing at home feels about right," Neville told Sky Sports. "June 12 feels a touch early but there's no reason to go beyond June 19 for a restart."

"I don't see players' fitness being a concern - I don't see them needing four or five weeks. Even when they've had six weeks off for pre-season, within 10 days of going back in they'd be playing games again in pre-season.

"They wouldn't be 100 per cent fit but these are uncharted times. I wouldn't expect the players to be absolutely perfect. I feel two to three weeks is about right to get them back playing again."

Clubs were hopeful of getting four weeks with their players in full training, with concerns they could be at greater risk of injury if they are rushed back.

Several big-name players like Tottenham's Harry Kane have been recovering from injuries over the lockdown anyway, but Neville says it's no different to years when there are summer international tournaments.

"We're constantly told throughout the season that players are overworked, play too many matches," he added. "What we can't have is a situation where the players have had an eight-week break to then say they need six weeks of training to get back to fitness. That doesn't feel right.

"If Harry Kane was borderline fit for the European Championships and was going to be back two weeks before the tournament, he'd be saying he was fit and ready to go. I don't see the difference with this situation.

"If this was a major cup final or league game, and a player had been out for eight weeks with an injury and he only had 10 days of training, he'd be fighting to get into that squad. I don't buy into the need for an extended period of time."

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