​Liverpool skipper Henderson raises alarm over player welfare

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson feels player welfare is not at the top of people’s minds at present.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a turn for the worse in the UK, with rising case numbers due to the Omicron variant.

Premier League clubs are suffering significant outbreaks, but the Premier League is not postponing rounds of matches as yet.

Games on Boxing Day and during the rest of the festive period will happen as scheduled, unless games need postponing on a case-by-case basis due to serious team outbreaks.

“I don’t think people can appreciate how intense it is until you actually see it first hand,” Henderson told BBC Sport.

read also:Tennis: Djokovic wants to play Australian Open, tournament chief claims

“Football to us is everything and we want to be able to perform at the highest level every time we set foot on the pitch. And unfortunately, in this period it is difficult to do that.

“That has been like this for a few years now and it has been difficult but then, on top of that, you chuck in Covid and it becomes even harder and even worse.

“I am concerned that nobody really takes player welfare seriously.

“I think decisions get made – of course we want to play as footballers, we want to get out there and play – but I am worried about player welfare and I don’t think anybody does take that seriously enough, especially in this period, when Covid is here.

“We will try to have conversations in the background and try to have some sort of influence going forward, but at the minute I don’t feel the players get the respect they deserve in terms of having somebody being able to speak for them independently and having the power to say actually this isn’t right for player welfare.”