Why players should not be forced back into action

The 29-year-old, who retired from the game last summer to help protect his mental health, believes it must be a personal choice depending on a player’s individual circumstances.

He said: “Every single person has a different situation going on at home.

“Some people will be living on their own and they won’t have any responsibilities in that sense, or those fears that they may pass the virus onto somebody else if they contracted it themselves. That’s fine, they’ll be eager to play and they don’t have to worry about certain things.

“There will be other players who live with their parents, or they are their parents’ only means of being able to get food. Their partners might be pregnant or they might have young kids, and some might have underlying health conditions. Some players themselves might have underlying health conditions.

“I think all of those accounts need to be taken in, because you don’t need a situation where you’re forcing people to go back or they’re refusing to do things.”

Premier League clubs said they remain committed to restarting the 2019-20 season, but in a statement they said “it was agreed that the PFA, LMA, players and managers are key to this process and will be further consulted”.

Sordell added: “You have to respect people’s opinions in this.

“This virus at times is a matter of life and death and any game of football – regardless of the famous saying – football isn’t more than life or death.

“I think people’s own situations need to be respected. If they want to play, and it’s safe to do so, then allow them to play. If they don’t want to play because they don’t think it’s safe to do so, I think that needs to be respected.”

It is understood Premier League clubs have been told the only way to complete the season is for the remaining 92 matches to be played at neutral venues.

Sordell insisted that was sensible from a safety point of view, but not from a sporting integrity angle.

“People may say ‘it’s just a football match’ – it is, but at the highest level, every single detail counts big and this is the difference between places, which obviously makes a massive difference financially as well.”