Sport

Kenny Archer's Hitting The Target: Covid concerns as real for big clubs as for countries

Kenny Archer

Kenny Archer

Kenny is the deputy sports editor and a Liverpool FC fan.

Portugal's match against Azerbaijan has been switched to Turin, Italy for covid-related reasons.
Portugal's match against Azerbaijan has been switched to Turin, Italy for covid-related reasons. Portugal's match against Azerbaijan has been switched to Turin, Italy for covid-related reasons.

From Azerbaijan in the east to Portugal in the west, from Norway in the north to Gibraltar in the south…

No, that's not some lesser-known Churchillian speech, but an iron curtain of sorts could be pulled across the soccer scene in the next few years.

While the GAA may have settled its club versus county scheduling conflicts, at least from next year onwards, soccer's club versus country rows are rumbling on and becoming more problematic.

Already the South American qualifiers for the next World Cup scheduled for this international break have been cancelled, in large part after leading European clubs spoke out about players having to quarantine for 10 days on their return.

However, games leading towards Qatar 2022 are taking place elsewhere around the world over the next week.

Those are actual fixtures between those countries mentioned in the opening paragraph, which illustrates the breadth and depth of Europe.

The spread, if you will.

Covid concerns are real. But they've been real for a year and more, and soccer has been back in action since last summer.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola was among those who expressed understandable worries earlier this month about certain players having to go into quarantine, along with Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp and Manchester United's Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, among others.

With South American counties on the UK's travel 'red list', even Fifa agreed that clubs wouldn't have to allow their players to travel in such circumstances.

Yet Pep was rather more dubious in the comments he made at the weekend about his players who are heading off to World Cup qualifiers involving European nations:

"I hope they can come back well, not just for us but for them. We have been incredibly controlled in these four months but now the people are travelling."

Now?

If you comprehend that 'international football' can also mean 'matches between teams from different nations' then it's hard to have much sympathy for club bosses. The people, the players, have been travelling for some time, without such complaint.

When Liverpool played Leipzig twice in the Champions League recently both matches took place in Budapest – despite the Covid incidence rate in the Hungarian capital being higher than that in both the English and the German cities.

It was the exact same situation for Manchester City's meetings with Borussia Moenchengladbach.

Fortunately, the away goals rule didn't have come into force, but taking the games to Hungary did seem rather farcical.

As does the fact that the Portugal-Azerbaijan game will actually be in Turin, Italy. Other matches have also been moved to neutral venues, including Norway's weekend meeting with Turkey set to take place in Malaga, Spain. Presumably for its proximity to Gibraltar.

The travel risk element remains, including going to countries where Covid is still prevalent and vaccination rates not high.

Surely host teams, whether they be clubs or countries, could ensure as good, if not better control of their own stadia as neutral hosts are able to do?

Liverpool and City did question the need to go to Budapest – but they didn't question the need for international travel. If regulations had allowed, they'd have happily hosted German visitors and gone to them too.

Presumably there'll still be people from Portugal on the pitch in Turin tonight, coming into close contact with the Azerbaijanis.

Just as there were players who live in Germany travelling to take on players who live in England, and vice versa, for those aforementioned club matches.

Guardiola slyly cast some doubts about the unknown risks his players would apparently be under on international duty, offering the sort of advice that grown-ups shouldn't really require a year into this ongoing situation: "We have spoken about this, to be careful, but you don't know what is going to happen…

"Hopefully the people that go abroad can come back safe. Hopefully the bubbles are controlled. Of course it is important for all the clubs."

Let's return to his earlier remark, particularly that phrase 'incredibly controlled'.

Incredibly controlled?

City have definitely shown incredible control on the pitch in recent months, but the same can't be said for some of their players off it.

Kyle Walker breached coronavirus regulations for reasons which we won't set out in a family newspaper.

His fellow full-back Benjamin Mendy was much more civilised, but he still broke the rules by hosting a New Year's Eve party including guests from outside his household. And bringing in a chef. As you do.

City punished him by placing him on the bench for their next match.

Other clubs and players have been guilty too, of course. Liverpool's star striker Mo Salah contracted Covid in November by attending his brother's wedding, having been on international duty with Egypt.

It's rather rich that clubs are highlighting Covid concerns about international breaks.

European club games took place in December and February when R numbers and incidence rates were mostly far higher than they are now, certainly as regards England.

Sure, the UK has gone from almost pariah state status, due to one of the highest death rates in the world, to being regarded as a paragon for its high levels of vaccination.

Indeed Guardiola is correct to comment that "We are lucky that England is the best country for vaccinating a lot of people and that has made our lives easier."

Yet his words would carry more weight if he'd spoken out against players having to cross international borders when the UK situation wasn't as positive.

Even now, the English public could be set for £5000 fines for travelling abroad without good reason.

Obviously Pep's not to blame; there's simply far too much money involved for the European club competitions to have been cancelled for a season.

However, there's no more reason – or no less reason - to put off the international games, or to cast aspersions on how countries will look after players than there has been in relation to club competitions.