International Football
FITNESS, FOCUS, FRUSTRATION: LIFE IN LOCKDOWN FOR EUROPE’S FOOTBALLERS
Juventus midfielder Sami Khedira is learning to play the piano, La Liga clubs are facing off on playstation and Atalanta’s Robin Gosens has been revising for exams in psychology.
Yet as thousands of footballers, from the highest levels to the lower leagues, remain on lockdown while coronavirus spreads across Europe, all of them are tasked with keeping themselves fit, as well as entertained.
“Everyone needs to be ready so that when the health advice says resume, we can resume straight away,” Emmanuel Orhant, medical director of the French Football Federation (FFF) said.
Nobody knows when that will be and with the global death toll from coronavirus passing 13,000 on Saturday, there is little appetite yet even to address the question.
But within football, the absence of a deadline only enhances the sense of urgency. In theory, the season could restart in a matter of weeks and clubs are determined to be ready.
“Players may even need to get their summer break in now,” Brighton striker Glenn Murray told AFP.
“We might finish the 2019/20 season and then roll into 2020/21 without any break at all.” Asked if the players would accept that scenario, Murray said:
“We don’t have any choice.” It means fitness coaches and club doctors are creating week-to-week conditioning programmes, personalised for individual players, explained through Whatsapp and Skype, and dependent on both technology and trust.
“Every one of our players has been given the guidance they need from our coaches, nutritionists and doctors,” Real Betis head of medical Jose Manuel Alvarez told AFP.
“It is up to them to take it.” Betis, who sit 12th in La Liga, have divided their squad into groups depending on physical characteristics, with one coach assigned to each.
Devices then send data on fatigue, sleep, pain and even moods while players submit reports to the doctors on their weight and temperature, and to the fitness department regarding targets achieved.
“Players know if they don’t do their job they will be at a clear disadvantage against their teammates when normal training resumes,” Alvarez says.
In that sense, they are given no excuses. Many players already have gyms at home but club owners have paid thousands to ensure those without have all the equipment they need.
“A football player’s mechanics are precise, complex and sophisticated,” Marseille president Jacques-Henri Eyraud told AFP.
“And they require almost daily maintenance.”
Yet many clubs believe there is more to it than bikes and treadmills.
– SELF DISCIPLINE –
In Germany, Bayern Munich held their first ‘cyber-training’ session on Wednesday, when the players worked out through video-conference and then stayed online for an almost an hour to catch up.
In France, Lyon have told their players to rest until March 24, while in Spain, Atletico Madrid have done tactical work, with video meetings held between players and coaches to reinforce key messages.
Atletico are also particularly stringent on diets. Like most clubs, they deliver meals devised by their nutritionists but players also choose between options for lunch and dinner, which they then eat at the same time as their teammates.
Self-discipline will not come easy to some.
“Of course some players are better than others at handling this sitation,” Jonathan Barnett, agent of Gareth Bale and Stella Group, told AFP.
“Players are human beings too and at the moment they’re very frustrated.”
Much will depend on personal circumstances. Lockdown can either offer the chance to spend more time with family or leaves family far away and unusually difficult to reach.
Inter Milan’s Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku is unable to see his mother, who has high-risk diabetes, while Real Madrid’s Luka Jovic broke self-isolation rules when attempting to visit his girlfriend in Serbia.
“Some of our foreign guys have missed the opportunity to go home,” Brighton’s Murray said.
“It’s extremely difficult for them.”
Older players like Murray, who is 36, also feel the frustration of time being wasted.
“It’s made me more determined to play as long as I can,” Murray said.
And for those where football has forever been a way of life, boredom can quickly take hold.
“It’s so strange not being able to train,” AC Milan goalkeeper Asmir Begovic said last week.
“You try to do other things but there’s only so much Netflix you can watch.”
More generally, there seems to be an acceptance that no matter how thorough the programmes, players will return considerably less fit and far more prone to injury.
Philippe Piat, president of FIFPro, which represents professional players worldwide, told AFP: “The doctors say 15 days off needs 15 days of training so what will it take if there are three weeks off? They were clear: don’t be surprised if there are injuries.”
“The risk of injury is something we really do expect,” said Betis doctor Alvarez.
“They will never reach the level of a normal training session, that’s obvious. It’s a strange and completely new situation for everyone.”
-AFP
Mexico and Portugal played out a 0-0 draw at the Estadio Azteca on Saturday in a friendly to mark the stadium’s reopening ahead of the World Cup.
The match doubled as a test event for the revamped stadium, drawing a festive crowd eager to sample the atmosphere ahead of the June 11 to July 19 global soccer showpiece, which Mexico is co-hosting with the U.S. and Canada.
“It’s the best possible scenario, as I’ve said; to play here, you’ve got to have guts, because the fans are demanding and want to win and see good football,” Mexico coach Javier Aguirre told reporters.
“The players gave it their all right to the end against Portugal, who are not an easy team. They’re a top-10 side, a really solid team.”
Portugal’s Joao Felix went close in the 14th minute before Goncalo Ramos struck the post midway through the first half.
The visitors continued to look the more dangerous side after the break, with Bruno Fernandes firing just wide.
Tensions briefly flared between Pedro Neto and Jesus Gallardo, while the introduction of Toluca’s Portuguese striker Paulinho was met with loud cheers from the home crowd.
“I think we had 10 shots on goal, which isn’t far off what we were aiming for,” Portugal coach Roberto Martinez said.
“What isn’t good is the number of shots on target; we lacked accuracy.
“Success or failure isn’t just about the score. There are many more factors at play these days. I think that, after 90 minutes, the team is better prepared for the World Cup.”
Mexico almost claimed a late winner through substitute Armando Gonzalez but the forward’s header went wide.
Mexico, who were booed by sections of the crowd at the final whistle, face Belgium in another friendly on Tuesday, while Portugal take on the United States the same day.
-Reuters
Portugal’s Goncalo Ramos in action with Mexico’s Erik Lira REUTERS/Eloisa Sanchez
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Amid the controversy over Senegal being stripped of the Africa Cup of Nations title and Morocco being declared winners, the international debut of Issa Diop on Friday proved something of an irony as well as a public relations coup.
The Fulham defender was born in France and played for the country at the Under-21 level, but on Thursday had his application to switch nationality to Morocco approved by world football’s governing body FIFA and was immediately drafted into the starting line-up for the 1-1 draw against Ecuador in Madrid.
Diop, whose father is Senegalese and mother from Morocco, had previously rejected overtures from both countries to play for them while holding out hope he might represent France.
The 29-year-old said several times he wanted to play for Les Bleus, but with no call-up from France coach Didier Deschamps, he has now taken up the opportunity to possibly play at the World Cup for Morocco.
“I was very happy to play in a team with a lot of good players, and I think I’ve made a good choice,” Diop said after Friday’s match.
Diop had talks with Morocco’s new coach, Mohamed Ouahbi and Moroccan Federation President Faouzi Lekjaa.
“They explained their vision to me, and I was taken in with open arms by a cheerful group of players with a great atmosphere in the camp,” he said.
The North Africans have a track record of assiduously courting players with links to the country who they believe can improve their national team, but this is the first tug-of-war over player loyalty with another African country they have won.
Senegal also draw heavily on their diaspora in France, and the 28-man squad which won the Cup of Nations in Morocco in January featured 12 French-born players.
Senegal this week formally contested the decision of the Confederation of African Football’s Appeal Board to take the title away from them.
They were ruled to have forfeited the final in Rabat on January 18 because they walked off the pitch in protest at a potentially decisive penalty awarded to Morocco, but have now referred the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The posturing between the two countries continued on Friday when Senegal held a press conference ahead of Saturday’s friendly against Peru in front of a banner that read “Champions of Africa”.
They are expected to display the Cup of Nations trophy to supporters ahead of the match at the Stade de France.
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Nigeria’s Super Eagles secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Iran in an international friendly concluded on Friday in Belek, Turkey, boosting confidence ahead of upcoming competitive fixtures.
In a match played against the backdrop of geopolitical tension surrounding the Iranian team’s World Cup preparations, Nigeria showed greater composure in key moments to emerge deserved winners.
The Super Eagles took the lead in the first half after a lively start, through Moses Simon in the 7th minute.
Nigeria doubled the lead through Akor Adams in the 51st minute. Iran reduced the deficit in the 67th minute through Medhi Taremi.
The encounter was Nigeria’s first meeting with Iran since their goalless draw at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and it provided an important test for the technical crew as they assess player combinations and tactical options.
The match also carried added attention following Iran’s pre-game protest gesture, where players wore black armbands and held schoolbags in solidarity with victims of a recent conflict-related incident.
For Nigeria, the result offers a positive platform as preparations continue, with another friendly against Jordan scheduled in the coming days. The win is expected to strengthen morale within the squad while giving the coaching crew clearer insight into the team’s readiness for future challenges.
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