Everton’s Keane says players can be ready in a fortnight

LONDON: Everton and England defender Michael Keane said on Wednesday that players will be able to return to Premier League action after only a “couple of weeks’ proper training”.

The coronavirus pandemic has seen professional football in England suspended until at least April 30. Premier League clubs are due to meet on April 3 to discuss what the English top flight does next.

“All the lads have been sent individual training programmes to carry out at home,” Keane told Talksport radio. “It’s not easy because you’ve not got the normal equipment, you’ve just got to improvise and do what you can.

“The Premier League could start again in a month, it could be longer. “So we’ve just got to keep that base level of fitness. As long as we get a couple of weeks’ proper training before the next game -- and the lads have worked hard in the meantime -- we’ll be fine.”

The centre-back said Everton’s backroom staff were monitoring the players’ progress. “We log on with the sessions we’ve done, and they keep an eye on what we’re doing and gauge our fitness from that,” he added.

Keane, along with fellow players, manager Carlo Ancelotti and chairman Bill Kenwright, has also been speaking to isolated fans as part of the Liverpool club’s Blue Family campaign. “We’re helping out in the community, which is brilliant,” said Keane, who spoke on the phone to 78-year-old Everton supporter Rod. “It was great to hear the happiness in the voice when I gave him a call. He said it made his day, and it made mine as well.”