Borek Dockal, captain of Sparta Prague, has written to the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic asking for football to be allowed to return ahead of the club’s Europa League double-header with Celtic.
No matches have been played in the Czech league in the last month after the government suspended matches upon introducing stricter coronavirus measures.
All sporting competitions have been stopped in the country until 3 November, but an exception has been made for the Europa League. Consequentially, Sparta will go into the Celtic match having only played against AC Milan and Lille in the last month, whereas the Scottish champions have been playing twice a week. Sparta Prague’s skipper has written to Prime Minister, Andrej Babis, to ask the government to allow football to resume.
As things stand the league will not be allowed to resume until 7 November, which is two days after Prague’s fixture at Celtic Park.
An open letter from the Czech Republic’s three Europa League club captains said: “Dear Mr. Prime Minister, in the current difficult situation let us address you directly and describe to you the difficult reality in which not only we, our clubs, but all professional football in the Czech Republic is living.
“In the current season, we’ve been following the strict hygiene rules of the Ligové Fotbalové protocol and the UEFA Return to Play protocol.
“We are tested before each match, we have often been forced to leave our loved ones and enter voluntary isolation to eliminate possible infection, all with with the aim of not endangering teams in any way and minimising the possibility of the spread of Covid-19 in the football environment.
“We are convinced that football is unique in this respect and we do not know of any similar measures being applied in other sectors.
“In the difficult current climate we are, of course, fully aware that the negative epidemiological situation in the Czech Republic also requires extraordinary measures.
“However, we are convinced that in the case of the application of the above measures, the continuation of professional football competitions does not represent any material risk in terms of the spread of Covid-19 and the worsening of the epidemiological situation in the Czech Republic.
“It is necessary to emphasise that, from a sporting point of view, our clubs are fundamentally disadvantaged compared to their European rivals by the interruption of professional competition.
“We believe that watching matches on television can, at a time when most of the country’s citizens are limited in their normal activities, mean not only hope, but also a positive experience that will make the current situation much better.”
The Hoops face Sparta Prague on Thursday 5 November at 8pm. Having drawn against Lille away from home, the Bhoys will be looking to take maximum points and set themselves up for a strong chance of qualification.
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