COVID quarantine rules cause qualifier confusion

Less than a week before European qualifying for World Cup 2022 is due to begin, it is looking increasingly likely that some national sides will be forced to send out second-string outfits, with clubs reluctant to release players who would then have to quarantine.

Manchester City's Ilkay Gündogan is one of a number of German players based abroad who are unsure whether they will be able to travel for fixtures with Iceland in Duisburg on March 25 and Romania in Bucharest three days later. 

Speaking to German public broadcaster ARD, Gündogan admitted he would be "disappointed" to miss out with Euro 2020 fast approaching. But with travel between England and Germany leading to a substantial quarantine period once back in the county of origin, he said it remained a possibility.

"It's not too far away anymore, it starts on Monday. I don't know. I have to stay patient and wait and see," said the midfielder whose City side had to play both legs of their Champions League tie against Borussia Mönchengladbach in Budapest due to coronavirus regulations.

Worldwide worry

Chelsea trio Kai Havertz, Timo Werner and Antonio Rüdiger are in the same boat, as is Arsenal's Bernd Leno while English players in the Bundesliga, like Jude Bellingham, would have the same problem.

The nature of the pandemic means it's a problem that is not restricted to those two countries, or to one continent. This round of South American qualifiers have been postponed altogether, largely because so many players were unable to travel to and from Europe.

"The CONMEBOL Council decided to suspend the double date of the qualifiers for Qatar 2022 scheduled for March," reads a tweet released by the South American federation on March 6. "The decision is due to the impossibility of having all the South American players in a timely manner."

Almost a week after that announcement, FIFA rubber-stamped the postponements. But, although that precedent has been set, it can only be assumed there are no such plans for the qualifiers set to be played in Europe. When questioned by DW, UEFA pointed to a list of matches that had switched venues and stated that any postponement decision was ultimately FIFA's to take. FIFA have yet to respond to DW's questions.

But the lack of clarity puts governing bodies on a collision course with the most powerful clubs. Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick has said David Alaba won't play Austria's first match, in Scotland, and said he is "waiting to see what the authorities say" on Robert Lewandowski, whose Polish side are slated to face England on March 31.

Poles apart?

Like Alaba, Lewandowski is critical to his nation's hopes of qualification. The Polish captain's 19 goals in 20 qualifying games have carried his team to the last two Euros and to the upcoming one. He's similarly prolific in World Cup qualifiers and his absence against England would be hugely detrimental to the chances of Poland, who rely on a significant number of players who play abroad. England, in contrast, select almost enitrely from a domestic pool of players (Bellingham and the injured Jadon Sancho aside), meaning they should have no such issues. Can this really be fair?

FIFA updated its regulations last month to state that if players need to quarantine for five days or more on their return from an international match, clubs are not compelled to release them for internationals.

"The players are paid by the clubs so it means we have to be first priority," said Liverpool's German head coach Jürgen Klopp."I think everyone agrees we cannot let the players go and play for their countries, then come back and have to quarantine for 10 days in a hotel. It is not possible."

That sentiment has indeed found widespread support among Klopp's contemporaries, particularly given the condensed nature of the current season.

If Gündogan's comments are anything to go by, you have to think support among players will be less universal. And his thoughts don't stop at next week's World Cup qualifiers. The midfielder also said he "could not imagine" the multi-city Euro 2020 tournament actually going ahead in the summer. 

With COVID-19 infections back on the rise in countries like Germany and UEFA President Aleksandar Ceferin demanding a guarantee from host nations that games be played in front of at least some fans, Gündogan's skepticism is not without merit.