Jürgen Klopps Liverpool FC is locked out. The English champions are not allowed to enter Germany for the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 on February 16 at RB Leipzig. The federal police rejected a special request from Saxony for the club’s entry on Thursday, as a spokeswoman for the Federal Ministry of the Interior of the German Press Agency confirmed. The “Bild” newspaper had previously reported on it. Leipzig must now propose an alternative as soon as possible. The Bundesliga club and Liverpool initially did not comment on Thursday evening.
“The Corona Protection Ordinance passed by the federal government last Friday only provides for a few exceptions and no special regulations for professional athletes,” said the BMI spokeswoman. “The Federal Police informed the RB Leipzig association today that the described case constellation does not fall under the exceptional circumstances.”
“It’s not annoying yet”
The background to this is the entry ban, which is initially valid until February 17, for people from particularly affected corona mutation areas, including Great Britain. The second leg in Liverpool is scheduled to take place on March 10th. Borussia Mönchengladbach’s round of 16 first leg against Liverpool’s league rivals Manchester City on February 24th is initially not affected by the regulation.
According to the regulations of the European Football Union Uefa, the home team is responsible for organizing the game. There must be clarity by February 8th. In the worst case for the Bundesliga club, the game can be rated 0: 3 against Leipzig. The round of 16 must be completed by April 2nd. Those responsible at RB Leipzig had vehemently spoken out in favor of being allowed to play the game in their own stadium. The application for the special permit had been made on Monday. Coach Julian Nagelsmann had said that he would not let the topic touch on for the time being. “I can’t influence it anyway,” said the 33-year-old on Tuesday. “It’s not annoying yet because I don’t yet know one hundred percent what it looks like.”
One option would be to postpone it, which, given the already tight schedule, should probably not please any club. There is also the option of exchanging home rights. According to the “Bild” newspaper, a corresponding proposal should have been rejected by Liverpool. In addition, the problem might just be postponed because the Federal Republic of Germany could extend the regulation.
Leipzig can also propose a neutral stadium, which Uefa would then have to approve. The short way would lead to Salzburg. RB Salzburg will play in the Europa League against FC Villarreal on February 18. In the past, Uefa had already approved Budapest as a neutral venue in another case.
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