Stiliyan Petrov slams Premier League bosses after major Aston Villa update

Aston Villa news - The 20 Premier League clubs agreed on a date to restart the season amid the coronavirus pandemic

Former Aston Villa midfielder Stiliyan Petrov has accused Premier League bosses of prioritising money over player welfare, after Project Restart was given the green light on Thursday.

Petrov's old team will kick-off the restarted campaign when they play Sheffield United on June 17. That comes after the 20 top-flight clubs agreed to resume the season amid the Covid-19 outbreak.

League chiefs have said that fixtures will only go ahead if cases continue on their current downward trajectory. But Petrov, who battled leukaemia during his time at Villa, has questioned the idea of bringing football back in a matter of weeks.

Speaking as part of the MIP Alumni Association, Petrov said: “We talk about the pandemic but what we see is wealth before health.

"With Covid 19 we still manage to put the wealth before the health which we don't realise is a big issue.

"It's understandable, it's very understandable why football is pushing to get back.

"As much as we say that some players are right and some players are wrong, there are so many unanswered questions out there, so many ifs and buts.

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"So many questions - can we restart and if we restart how good is it going to be? There's so many questions out there.”

Germany's Bundesliga was the first major league to restart, but after three matches behind closed doors, Petrov has questioned the quality on display, although he empathises that players will be keen to return.

"As much as I don't enjoy the Bundesliga, I know the players feel great because they run, they play and they enjoy it.

"So as much as we talk about what is right and what is wrong, it is hard to pick.”