England captain Harry Kane says players are waiting for safety guidance from the Premier League after the government said it was “opening the door” for the return of football next month.

Culture secretary Oliver Dowden said Thursday’s meeting with the Football Association, Premier League and English Football League had “progressed plans for the resumption of the professional game in England”.

The Premier League hopes for a return to action on June 12, with matches played behind closed doors. Tottenham striker Kane is willing to take the next step, moving from individual training to small group sessions, but suggested more information was needed

“I don't think anyone knows the right answer at the moment,” he told ITV’s Good Morning Britain programme. “I think the majority of players are looking forward to playing again as soon as possible but we know we want it to be as safe as possible too.

“From what I have heard — obviously I haven’t seen too much of my team-mates — at the moment everyone is OK. We want to see how the Premier League gives us a plan and what that looks like.”

Kane confirmed that he, along with the rest of the Spurs squad, had taken initial tests for coronavirus, with no positive results following their return to training.

“About a week ago we started going to the training ground, we were allowed to have one-on-one training with one member of staff on one pitch, self-distancing from everyone,” he said.

“We had tests on Monday, all the players and staff had tests, and everyone came back negative, which was great.”

Ethnic concerns

Charlton midfielder Darren Pratley says black and ethnic minority players have fears over restarting football because they are more at risk from coronavirus.

“We’ve been told that BAME (Black, Asian, and minority ethnic) footballers are at higher risk, which is concerning being mixed-race,” he said on Friday.