Crisis hit football, players fear playing in high-risk environments

 

Football players worried about the impact of coronavirus have been contacting unions “out of fear” they could be forced to play in “high-risk environments”, The Punch quotes global body Fifpro, as reporting.

Qualifiers for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and 2022 World Cup could be postponed in a bid to prevent the spread.

This weekend’s matches in Switzerland’s top two divisions have been postponed.

Tottenham’s Son Heung-min will self-isolate in line with UK guidelines when he returns from surgery in South Korea.

Newcastle and West Ham have banned handshakes at their training grounds in an attempt to stop the virus’ spread.

Fifpro, a global union with 65 affiliated national associations, says there have been talks between “various football stakeholders” about rescheduling international dates.

A number of World Cup qualifying matches in the Asian Football Confederation, including Australia’s home match against Kuwait and Hong Kong’s trip to Iran, are set to be played at the end of March.

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China’s home qualifier against the Maldives has already been moved to Thailand and is set to be played behind closed doors.

Asian Champions League matches involving Chinese clubs Guangzhou Evergrande and Shanghai Shenhua have also been postponed.

Five Italian Serie A matches will be played behind closed doors this weekend – including Juventus’ match at home to Inter Milan.

“While we understand the inconvenience this causes worldwide, the Covid-19 outbreak is bigger than football, and we applaud the willingness of competition organisers to take firm action in this delicate period,” said Fifpro, which works on behalf of more than 65,000 players.

“As the coronavirus continues to spread, with new cases emerging every day, we are calling on all football stakeholders to act responsibly.”

Tottenham forward Son, 27, travelled to Seoul for surgery on a fractured arm earlier this month.

Tottenham say he will follow government advice and stay indoors as a precaution upon his return.

Newcastle manager Steve Bruce said his squad had a “ritual” of shaking hands with each other every morning.

“We’ve stopped that on the advice of the doctor,” he said.

“Thankfully, we’ve got a superb doctor here and he will keep us informed of what we have to do.

“We’re like everybody else, we’re glued to the TV for where it’s going to go next and let’s hope it doesn’t get any worse in this country.”