Isolated in overseas lands, footballers figure out how to deal without the overall game
The riches, glamour and glory of playing football in front of packed stadiums attracts the world’s top players across borders but with the European game in lockdown, various have been kept isolated from their own families.
Coronavirus has forced governments across European countries to impose swingeing restrictions on travel and leisure and personal freedoms.
Footballers’ daily routines have been upended without games to play for the near future and training sessions nowadays conducted alone in the home or perhaps via video-conferencing to maintain some semblance of workforce spirit.
“It is a approach to retain in contact with each other, to start a small amount of routine because I think that is important,” said Brighton supervisor Graham Potter, who has his squad doing communal morning sessions via video.
“Our guys are here in the UK. That is definitely why it is important for us to retain in contact and frequent dialogue and make sure everyone is alright.
“They are from families, they are missing families and that's something we understand. We sympathise with that, but we felt it was to limit international travel and also to stay at residence and become safe.”
Other clubs allowed their superstars to jet residence. Paris Saint-Germain’s Neymar and Thiago Silva came back to Brazil and Edinson Cavani headed to Uruguay before France gone into lockdown.
By contrast, Chelsea’s Spanish winger Pedro Rodriguez was trapped in London as he and the rest of the Blues squad were forced into self-isolation when teammate Callum Hudson-Odoi tested great.
“It’s hard not to have the ability to see my children,” Pedro Rodriguez, whose kids are in Barcelona, told Spanish radio station Cadena SER. “I imagine there are numerous people like me.
“I tell them in which to stay the home and that We miss them.”
Birmingham boss Pep Clotet sent his family back again to Spain before circumstances of emergency was declared found in his homeland, but remained found in England to do what do the job he could.
“I am caught between two worlds,” stated Clotet. “I feel I cannot do my job effectively. I keep thinking ‘Probably I should return back?’ But We cannot return back because We am working.”
- ‘I sleep a whole lot’ -
For others, the greatest concern is filling period and the void still left by no football.
“I am obviously just a little bored since fourteen days have passed because the start of the quarantine in the home,” Juventus’ Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny told Sky Sport Italia.
“I am alone in Turin because my family went to Poland. With that said, however, I must declare that I am having a calm period. I sleep a whole lot.”
The unexpected downtime is even allowing some players familiar with globe-trotting extra quality time with their family members.
Sevilla midfielder Ever Banega features spent almost all his playing career in Spain, however the 65-time capped Argentine international is used to hopping backwards and forwards over the Atlantic to represent his region.
“It’s strange since there is always soccer along. When La Liga stops, there are international video games. Even in the summertime, there is football with pre-season game titles,” Banega told AFP.
“You miss a whole lot of moments together with your loved ones. Nowadays what I am largely doing is taking good thing about enough time with my children, my wife, enjoying the family time.”
No one knows how much time European football’s unprecedented stoppage can last, with leagues even now hoping to complete a truncated season when it is safe to do so.
When it can, players will go back with a fresh appreciation for why they travel around all over to play the overall game.
“You awaken and you don’t really know what to accomplish,” said Celtic’s French defender Christopher Jullien.
“Right today it is merely a different existence. You understand how life is similar to every day without soccer. I miss football.”
