The Premier League need to provide greater transparency over why games are called off because of Covid-19 and set parameters for future postponements, says former Manchester City defender Danny Mills.
City’s Premier League trip to Everton on Monday was called off a little over four hours before the game was due to kick-off because of a coronavirus outbreak among the Citizens squad.
City say the decision was taken on medical advice in conjunction with the Premier League and Everton after the latest round of testing returned a number of positive cases.
Gabriel Jesus, Kyle Walker and another two members of staff had previously tested positive for Covid-19, but City's clash with Newcastle United on Saturday still went ahead.
The Toffees later released a statement of their own claiming they were only informed of the decision to postpone the game once it had been made and wanted “full disclosure” of all the information submitted by Manchester City to the Premier League.
It is the second Premier League match to be postponed because of coronavirus this season, after Newcastle’s match against Aston Villa was called off at the start of December following an outbreak at the Magpies’ training ground.
Mills expects more matches to be postponed given the rise in cases across the country, but says the authorities should provide clear reasoning for each case.
He told Sky Sports: “I think the issue is at what point do we start to cancel games, what are the protocols? Is it four players out? Is it five? Is it six? Is it backroom staff?
“I think what we need, and we never really had it with the Newcastle issue, is a bit of transparency and we need the Premier League to come out and say why the game was called off.
“I think Everton are a little bit upset and miffed that the game was called off at such late notice. They haven’t really been given too many reasons because of that and I think that’s all it needs. The Premier League just needs to come and say ‘look, the game was called off because of x, y, z,’ whatever it might be.
“Even if they have to take it on a case-by-case basis when this happens [again] because it is going to happen as we move forward and this virus mutates and starts to change and all these types of things.
“People just want to know what the parameters are and when games are likely to be called off.”