The fall out from Germany’s 3-1 victory against Ukraine on Saturday is rumbling on. The match was in doubt until the afternoon of the game itself as five members of the Ukraine squad tested positive for Coronavirus in the 48 hours beforehand. It only took place after being given the go ahead by the local health authorities in Leipzig when it was decided that the rest of the team did not need to isolate.
Now the post match tests have revealed that three more of the squad have tested positive, two of whom took part in the match on Saturday. Whether the Ukraine‘s match in Switzerland tomorrow takes place is uncertain.
This issue has sparked further debate about whether this round of international matches should be taking place. The UEFA Nations League may be important in the eyes of the football authorities but the tournament has hardly caught the imagination of Europe’s football fans. That matches requiring international travel are being scheduled, at a time when most of Europe has travel bans in place, is coming in for intense criticism.
The threads on the Facebook feeds of both Kicker and 11 Freunde, the leading German football publications, were overwhelmingly in favour of postponing the Ukraine game on Saturday whilst opining there is absolutely no justification for playing the final match in the qualifying stages against Spain tomorrow. As the international team struggles for credibility and support this week has been a further blow to its reputation.
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