Coronavirus: Too many managers have lost jobs for season not to count - Ian Holloway

Ian Holloway became Grimsby boss in December and has guided them to 13th in League Two

The 2019-20 season must be completed because too many managers have lost their jobs for it not to matter, says Grimsby boss Ian Holloway.

Since the campaign began in August, 34 managers and head coaches in the top four divisions of English football have lost jobs or left by mutual consent.

Elite football in England is suspended until 30 April but the season will run “indefinitely” until it is finished.

“It should be a priority for us to do that,” Holloway told BBC Sport.

“There is too much to be lost and that has already been lost. Managers have lost their jobs in this season, so how can it not count?"

No games have been played in the Premier League since 9 March, and none in the English Football League since the following day, because of the coronavirus outbreak.

But Holloway, who managed both Crystal Palace and Blackpool in the Premier League and who has worked in all top four divisions, believes everyone must “do whatever it takes” to see all games completed, even if that means affecting the 2020-21 season.

“Supporters have been waiting years to see their teams do well, Leeds going for promotion from the Championship and Liverpool should get the (Premier League) title," the 57-year-old said.

“All these things - promotion, relegation - it has to count for something. What is the point other than that?"

He continued: “Calling off the Euros was the best thing we could do. That will give us time to somehow squeeze the end of this season in maybe before we start the next one.

“Even if you go to play Saturday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, clubs have youth policies, so give the young 'uns a chance - you just have to get it done, simple as that.

“And if that interrupts the timing of, or we have to splice next season in two a little to make it all fit in, we need to do that.”

‘We are chainsaws’

Like many other clubs, Holloway and his backroom staff are monitoring the Grimsby players remotely after setting them individual training requirements while social distancing, but he said they would be ready for action when instructed.

“All we are doing is ticking over,” he added. “It is like starting a chainsaw, leaving it on the floor, stopping the blade going around but you can hear the motor running.

“We are ready to go, but when that will be who knows?

“The way this virus is escalating I can’t see in a couple of weeks things changing.”

However, Holloway's view is not shared by all other clubs.

‘A line in the sand’

Rochdale chief executive David Bottomley believes next season should be prioritised over going on to complete the 2019-20 campaign.

“We would have preferred a line in the sand drawn on this season with promotion, relegation and championships et cetera based on points per game and to come out with a start date for next season, because we’re delaying the inevitable here,” he told BBC Radio Manchester.

Rochdale are 19th in League One, just four points above the relegation places

Bottomley said the knock-on effect of an ‘indefinite’ timeline on the season would impact on clubs as businesses and the futures of players themselves.

“We were supposed to be starting new pitch work on the 4 May, which would have taken 12 weeks to complete ahead of the new season,” he continued.

“So if we have a season that potentially starts (again) in May and then starts again in August, we’ll have to get a new pitch in.

“There are also players that are out of contract in June of this year and also, for most clubs at our level, the season ticket income normally comes in in May and June.

“It keeps a club like Rochdale going through the lean summer months when you have no income.

“Who is now going to buy a season ticket on 1 May when they don’t know when next season is going to start?

“I’m just putting forward the issues we face in football by these continued delays over the playing of sport.”

‘EFL should be applauded’

Bottomley previously said that the coronavirus outbreak could be “disastrous” for the finances of some EFL clubs and has greeted this week's news of the league’s £50m relief package as “a great gesture”.

The fund includes the early release of award payments, and an interest-free loan facility.

“What the EFL are doing, and I applaud them for doing this, is paying monies each club would have had up to the end of June they’re just paying it early so for clubs that have got immediate cash flow issues - for example trying to pay salaries in March and April - it would be very beneficial to them,” he said.

Exeter City chairman Julian Tagg said the £50m made available was a “significant” move by a governing body that has come under heavy criticism in recent years as member clubs have struggled financially.

“They have come in for a lot of stick , but I think this is one time where they should be applauded for what they have done in terms of preparation, and what they have done to relieve some of the immediate pressure on all the EFL clubs,” Tagg told BBC Sport.

“Their preparation work I believe to be exceptional in very difficult circumstances.

“Quite obviously a massive amount of work has gone on behind the scenes to enable them to make these decisions across a whole series of aspects to the business which are all related.”

Additional reporting by BBC Sport's Brent Pilnick