Lee Bowyer can not see how the season can be completed and has called on authorities to make a decision quickly.

Outlining his thoughts on the ongoing crisis Bowyer was his usual honest self not shying away from the key talking points

“Going on the guidelines we might be starting back on the 13th (April), when the lockdown is meant to finish, but watching the telly last night, they are talking about months (before the restrictions are lifted).

“The way they are talking it is three to six months. I just can’t see how the season is going to get going – I can’t see it.

“I might be wrong, but I’m just going on their advice.

“It wasn’t just one person, there was another expert on who said social distancing is going to go on for several months – if social distancing is going on for several months then you can’t play football.

“It’s all up in the air. The EFL are just sitting behind the guidelines from the NHS and that means we’re talking months and months of this.

“I don’t know when we’re going to be back, I really don’t know. I think everyone is just guessing.

“We’re coming off them (the players) this week because they’ve had two tough weeks. They are still going to be ticking over but not as intensely. 

“We’ll revisit at the end of the week and see if the EFL say anything.We can’t just keep slogging them at home – it’s mind-boggling trying to do that when they are at home. We don’t know if we’ve got something to play for. 

“Even if they said they would start in June then we can work around that in terms of a schedule.” 

Quite why Bowyer was working the players hard when he knew they would not be playing for at least two months is unclear, but he would have had his reasons. Bowyer highlighted players’ contracts ending at the end of June as Charlton have circa 15 players whose contracts expire on 30 June as a major stumbling block to being able to complete the season.

“This is a problem no-one seems to be talking about – nobody has even mentioned the contract situation.

“But someone did say that UEFA said if we haven’t started by the end of June then they’d probably look to cancel all football – make it null and void.

“Regarding us we have got something like 14 or 15 players out of contract (at the end of June)– including six loans.

“Even if they say that you can extend those by a month then a lot of clubs are going to run out of money. If a club runs out of money and can only pay half or less than that, then players ain’t going to play.

“I can’t see how you get around this. It’s not going to be one or two clubs – it’s going to be up and down the country, apart from the Premier League.All the other clubs are going to find it difficult. 

“You’re going to have players out of contract who are only getting a fraction of their wage. I can’t see how you’re going to get around that once you get to the end of June

“If a club ain’t got the money to pay their own players and they are not paying loan players then their clubs can say: ‘You ain’t paid us two months money and we’re taking him back’.

“It’s going to be really complicated.”