Dundee United, and the rest of Scottish football, are hoping a path forward out of the coronavirus uncertainty can be pieced together in the next few days, with Uefa leading the way.
Courier Sport understands that the Tannadice club are content to take a ‘wait and see’ approach this week. In truth, they have little option.
Celtic have been less subtle though, with Neil Lennon already insisting a season that doesn’t get concluded should result in the Hoops being confirmed as champions.
A source at another top-flight club is suggesting the campaign would have to be wiped from the record books, while Hearts are reported to be considering legal action if they are automatically relegated.
There are many questions but few answers at the moment, with clarity a distant second place to speculation.
As such, Tuesday’s Uefa conference calls will start to fill the information vacuum as the European leagues seek to plot a way beyond the suspension of their domestic competitions.
Nobody is expecting football to return by the start of April, or May for that matter, but if Uefa confirm that Euro 2020 is postponed for 12 months, or even cancelled, a plan can trickle down from that.
It will be a busy day for president Aleksander Čeferin and his operational leadership team. On the agenda are conference calls with the European Club Association, the European leagues, the 55 member associations and the Uefa executive committee.
It has been suggested that, as well as announcing what they will be doing with their own competitions – the Euro 2020, the Champions League, Europa League and Nations League – they will give blanket guidance on how domestic leagues should proceed. It would be unprecedented – and fraught with peril – for Uefa to wade into those murky waters, though.
More likely, they will leave it to individual associations and league governing bodies to decide on whether to go for the ‘null and void’ option, the ‘where you were placed is where you finish’ scenario or something more creative.
As far as the Scottish game is concerned, of the 11 SPFL clubs in Tayside and Fife, St Johnstone have the least to worry about regarding the new-look landscape, other than the financial issues affecting everybody. They could get into the top six but European qualification is out of the Perth side’s reach and they are safe from the drop.
United are the runaway leaders of the Championship and could be denied promotion back to the top flight if the season is wiped out. Dundee are in the play-off places, while Arbroath and Dunfermline still have a shot at joining them.
In League One, Raith Rovers are top, with Montrose and East Fife battling for the play-offs. At the other end, second bottom Forfar are in a relegation battle.
Cowdenbeath are promotion contenders in League Two, while rock bottom of the pyramid Brechin would arguably have the most to gain – SPFL survival – if the reset button was to be pressed.
If Uefa (and the government) leave the domestic game alone, Courier Sport understands that null and void is the least likely option given how much football has already been played.
Playing the remaining games in the summer is the preference, with the knock-on being changes to next season’s league and cup schedule if required.
Possible restructuring of the divisions will also be up for discussion later in the week when the SPFL and English governing bodies hold their own meetings.
