SC Freiburg midfielder Jonathan Schmid on Monday said that he is “not at all” afraid to return to the pitch, but added that a second wave of COVID-19 infections would put paid to German soccer’s plans to complete its interrupted season.
“Germany wants to finish their championship,” the 29-year-old Frenchman said. “We’re training for that. We’ll be ready when it resumes.”
The German Football League wants to restart matches in empty stadiums from Saturday next week, providing it gets the green light from German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government. A decision is expected today.
Photo: AP
Those plans were thrown into question on Monday when the Bundesliga said that its testing of players, coaches and backroom staff had produced 10 positive results. Three are known to be from top-flight side Cologne.
Germany has been less affected by the pandemic than other European nations, an outcome partly attributed to mass testing.
Schmid said that any signs that soccer’s return had produced a new surge in infections would halt the restart plans.
“If there is a second wave and it affects some clubs, I think the season will be over,” Schmid said. “The clubs don’t want to risk everything, but it’s also important to get back on track for the economic survival of the clubs.”
Despite having two children, Schmid said that he is not worried about the possibility of infection.
“No, not at all afraid. If we’re allowed to do it, then it’s safe,” he said. “We get tested once a week. If I am positive, I will stay away from my children and my wife. That’s the advantage for us, we’re being followed.”
Most German clubs resumed training on April 7, but with stringent social distancing measures.
“At first it was weird. You arrive at the training area already changed and go straight home for a shower. We don’t have a lot of time to communicate either,” Schmid said. “We don’t shake hands, we greet each other from a distance.”
However, the training is evolving.
“Now we are working in groups of four. Avoiding contact; no tackling. Football is a contact sport. A player needs that,” he said. “We’re already happy to be back on the pitch, on the ball, and having fun with a few teammates on the field.”
“We’re ready to go. We’ve been training more intensely than we do in the pre-season. There have been a lot of sprints, a lot of changes of direction. To avoid injuries, we are training harder,” he added. “Maybe there will be less training and more games. As a player, I’d rather play lots as they do in England than train for five days.”
If the league does resume, it will be behind closed doors, with voices echoing around empty stadiums. It is not the way Schmid wanted to try to lead his club to a place in European competition next season.
“I’ve never played behind closed doors. There will be something missing. With the stadium and the fans behind us, it’s tough for away teams to win at Freiburg. It’s always a plus,” said Schmid, who came up through the club’s youth system. “You have to be prepared for that and keep giving it your all.”
There has also been talk of players wearing masks on the pitch.
“Walking around with a mask is uncomfortable. I wear one when we go shopping. It’s not comfortable to breathe. So playing football...” he said, ending with a laugh.
Like their Bundesliga counterparts, Freiburg players have taken a pay cut.
“The club asked us to lower our salaries to help ground staff and office workers. We agreed. It was a good thing to do it compared with everything they do for us,” he said. “We wanted to give back something that would allow them to continue to live, because they also have families and rent to pay. It’s harder for them than it is for us. A little gesture does good.”
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but