'They might be out of work' - FIFPro to help resolve player contract crisis

World players' union FIFPro will attempt to resolve the impending problem surrounding player contracts and their respective expirations as the coronavirus continues to delay domestic football.

David Silva alongside Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola Source: Getty Images

The issue has been labelled an emergency by FIFA, who are attempting to find an agreement between affected leagues and clubs that would enable off-contract players to remain employed should the current campaign extend past June.

Football authorities throughout Europe have postponed the 2019-20 season as a result of the outbreak, leaving several clubs at risk of unprecedented negotiations with their players.

As reported by Sportsmail, any further delays past June 30 would see Premier League stars such as David Silva, Willian, Jan Vertonghen and on-loan Manchester United striker Odion Ighalo lose any legal obligation to play for their respective clubs.

Short-term contracts, signed on a weekly or monthly basis, has been one suggested solution for the aforementioned, though some players may seek extra monetary compensation should an injury affect any transfer likely to occur in time for next season.

FIFPro were part of the negotiations that saw UEFA postpone Euro 2020 until 2021 on Wednesday (AEDT) and general secretary Jonas Baer-Hoffmann welcomed the move in favour of finishing the club calendar.

"We know how football clubs' budgets are managed," Baer-Hoffmann said, as reported by the BBC.

"They're always right at the line or above it in terms of liquidity.

"If we don't respond quickly in terms of stabilising the cash flow, we could see mass redundancies and mass lay-offs of players and other staff within weeks.

"We know how big a problem we have with the calendar when it comes to player welfare.

"We will have tough conversations about when to play which matches and it will have to be managed, but the players are realising that unless we find solutions and play out the seasons, they might be out of work."