Marko Arnautovic (2nd R) of Shanghai SIPG tussles with Marouane Fellaini (R) of Shandong Luneng Taishan during the CFA Cup semifinal in Shanghai on Aug 20, 2019. (DING TING / XINHUA)

BEIJING - The Chinese Football Association (CFA) announced a proposal on Friday, calling upon all levels of professional clubs to cut employees' salaries temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the recommended rate between 30 and 50 percent.

The CFA said the proposal encourages clubs to negotiate with players and coaches to adjust their contracts in order to tackle the crisis after the pandemic hit the market hard. The suggested pay-cut period will be from March 1 until one week before the start of 2020 season.

"Foreign players and coaches as well as players on loan should be all be included in the action," noted the proposal.

The CFA said the proposal encourages clubs to negotiate with players and coaches to adjust their contracts in order to tackle the crisis after the pandemic hit the market hard

ALSO READ: CFA to rule on 5 clubs' eligibility for Chinese leagues membership

CFA president Chen Xuyuan told media recently that FIFA has agreed to the proposal after lengthy negotiations. "If any foreign player wants to sue us overseas, I believe FIFA will have our back," Chen said.

In addition, the proposal added that clubs could negotiate with their employees about delaying to pay no more than 30 percent of the salaries before the start of the season if necessary, but the delayed payment should be completed within 90 days.

If any club can't reach consensus with their players and coaches on adjusting contracts, and therefore needs to take unilateral action on unified pay cut, the proposal said the club should provide "sufficient materials, including the actual financial situation of the club and an indepth explanation to the CFA".

The Chinese football governing body also urged that footballers whose after-tax income is less than 10,000 yuan (about US$1,410) per month should not be involved in the pay cut scheme. In addition, clubs should not delay the payment of those who earn no more than 20,000 yuan a month.

Chen: CSL may resume with different format 

Chen said on that the 2020 Chinese Super League (CSL) may kick off in late June, with a different format, after months of postponement.

Chen Xuyuan greets attendees after being elected Chinese Football Association (CFA) president at a conference at the Xianghe National Football Training Center in north China's Hebei Province on Aug 22, 2019. (CAO CAN / XINHUA)

Chen, who became the new head of the CFA last year, revealed the CFA has been working on the preparation of national teams, the guidelines of China's football reform, and institutional reform, along with different plans for the suspended CSL.

The new season of the CSL was slated to begin on Feb 22, but was forced to be postponed because of the raging coronavirus.

According to Chen, the Chinese football governing body has designed three different formats in response to the postponement.

"Plan A is to finish the season with 30 rounds. We have a plan B if the league were to kick off in late June and finish in December, and we have also designed plan C for a later restart," Chen said.

"If we carry out plan B, we will actually only have four months because of the calendar of the national team and AFC Champions League, given that, we may divide the 16 teams into two groups, and decide the champion and relegations through two phases.

"There are twin pillars of the plans, firstly, we will resume the league once we meet the medical protocols, and secondly, the league needs adjustments to guarantee quality of the matches. Matches early in the season will be played without fans in attendance, and we will open the doors gradually," he added.

International fixtures too have been on hiatus due to the pandemic including the second round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers which should have concluded in June.

The 63-year-old Chen disclosed that the remaining four matches of Team China are expected to be played from September to November.

"We have been communicating with the AFC and FIFA over the past two months, it is almost certain that the second round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers will be finished during that period, and our team is also preparing for it based on this calendar."

READ MORE: Calls for CSL salary cut evoke mixed feelings

"The prevention of the pandemic is still the priority. We have eased the restrictions in China, but the situations abroad are still severe. We have four fixtures left including one away fixture against Guam, thus we should also follow the local medical protocols," Chen cautioned.

Chen also mentioned the Chinese women's football team who managed two wins and one draw in the previous Olympic qualification round.

"The two-legged playoffs set to kick off in early 2021 are incredibly important, we will try the best we can to secure a spot in Tokyo 2020," he emphasized.