Former Ipswich Town star Tyrone Mings believes the Premier League’s ‘Project Restart’ is driven by money.

East Anglian Daily Times: Tyrone Mings is an England internationalTyrone Mings is an England international (Image: PA Wire)

Mings, who made his name at Portman Road after signing from non-league Chippenham for just £10,000, now plays for Aston Villa, who are battling relegation in the Premier League.

Like the rest of football, the top tier has been suspended since March due to coronavirus - but will restart on June 17, behind closed doors.

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Mings told the Daily Mail: “Project Restart is financially driven. I think everybody accepts that.

“But that’s fine with me because I look at this monster that is Premier League football and the revenue it creates and I didn’t moan about being a part of it when everything was great so I’m not going to moan now when the atmosphere around the game is more hesitant.

“I am all for playing again because we have no other choice.

“As players, we were the last people to be consulted about Project Restart and that is because of where we fall in football’s order of priority. That isn’t a problem.

“We got the option to come back to training and that’s fine because we didn’t have to but if the FA and the EFL and the government and UEFA and the Premier League all say you are going back to play, it really doesn’t make any difference what the players think because you’re going back to play.”

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Villa are due to resume on June 17 against Sheffield United, their game in hand, and Mings is eager to get going with Dean Smith’s side second-bottom.

Mings said: “I would be lying if I said it had never crossed my mind that we might be relegated without kicking another ball.

“What player wants to be relegated with 10 games left while also having a game in hand?”