NThey don’t name names at FSV Mainz 05. Neither the three players who tested positive for Corona this week nor those who were not infected, who were also sent to a two-week quarantine as contact persons because they were not completely or not at all vaccinated. “If we still have a small advantage in this matter for Sunday, it is that the opponent does not know exactly who is playing,” said sports director Christian Heidel on Friday at the press conference before the first game of the season against RB Leipzig (3:30 p.m. in the FAZ- Live ticker for the Bundesliga and Sky).
But the fact that Heidel was also on the podium indicated that it was not a normal matchday press conference. First and foremost, it was about Corona. About the fact that currently eleven players plus two members of the coaching staff are not allowed to leave their own four walls – with the result that coach Bo Svensson has to pull up players from the U23 and / or U19, who can then call themselves Bundesliga players on Sunday evening.
At least the probability is high that after Karim Onisiwo, who fell ill last week, several other regular employees will be absent. “That might change the way we play a bit, but we will try to bring our virtues to bear under the circumstances,” said the Dane.
Postponement of the game not planned
Svensson recommends that those who have previously only been active in the lower class should approach the task in front of up to 13,500 fans as carefree as possible. “What can you do but look forward to this game? You can go in there with fear and anxiety, or you can take everything you can. ”It was a difficult week for him because he didn’t have much time to concentrate on football, said Svensson. “But we have to take on the challenges as they come.” And after the digested shock of the mass quarantine, this is now to put together a powerful, fearless team as possible in order to offer resistance to the championship runner-up. “Against Leipzig it is difficult with any formation, and now the task is not getting any easier.”
The statutes of the German Football League do not provide for a game to be postponed in such cases – not only in the case of Corona, but in general illnesses. For this, the squad would have to be decimated even more. When asked whether he viewed this as a distortion of competition, Svensson replied diplomatically laconically: “Not according to the DFL, that’s why we play.”
Ten players within the Mainz professional squad were not vaccinated, said board member Heidel. “Anyone would have had the option, but they decided against it for various reasons.” For example, out of “fear of the unknown” or that the performance would suffer from the consequences of a vaccination. The manager made it clear that he was not happy with these decisions. “I’m not a doctor, but the disadvantages of corona disease are certainly greater than those of a vaccination. And it’s nonsense to ask if we put enough pressure on the players. We urged them to get vaccinated, but as long as there is no compulsory vaccination in Germany, we cannot order, we can only hope for insight. “
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