Coronavirus: Berekum Chelsea reveals stance on pay cuts

Ghanaian side Berekum Chelsea are feeling the financial heat after the suspension of the Premier League but say cutting player salaries is not an option for the club.

The Blues, like most clubs around the world, have been heavily hit by the raging coronavirus pandemic which has resulted in the grounding of most national leagues as part of measures to curb the spread of the disease.

The health condition, also known as Covid-19, has so far infected more than 400,000 persons around the world, killing nearly 20,000 and bringing the world to a near standstill.

"Sponsors are not giving us money because there's no football activity," Chelsea administrative manager Francis Adjei told Goal on Tuesday.

"It means one of our sources of revenue for salaries has blocked. Management is having to find another way of raising money but even if we do, the question will be 'how long will this persist?'.

"Would we have to reduce salaries? And should we think about that, to start with, how much are the salaries of these boys for us to even consider a cut?

"Some are on ¢500 [€81], by how much can you even reduce that amount? If we are able to give salaries for this month, how are we going to be able to raise salaries for next month?"

In Ghana, where all public gatherings, including sporting and religious events, have been banned temporarily, 52 coronavirus cases and two deaths have been confirmed so far.

"Currently, our players have been released from camp. We would want to test them when they resume but to be honest, I don't think we have the resources," Adjei revealed.

"Even in the whole Ghana, the country is struggling with resources to test all those needed. So it's not something we currently have planned.

"But after the incident, maybe the nation or the GFA can decide to come on board to help clubs get their players tested."

He also spoke on how the club is having to manage its players as they await the return of the championship.

"One of our biggest challenges is about how to monitor the activities of our players while they are home. We would have wished that we even had the resources to camp the team throughout this incident, so we can control their activities and health," he added.

"Currently, our coaches give out instructions and assignments via a WhatsApp group that we have.

"Players are supposed to follow these, indeed they respond to those instructions but how are we sure they are actually doing what they claim they are doing or doing it well if they are doing it?"

The likes of England, Germany and Spain, who initially proposed a league return date, have been forced to revise their notes due to the unpredictability of Covid-19.

Ghana is into the second week of a one-month halt but there are many indications the timeline could be extended, forcing the league into more trouble.