With Coronavirus spreading all over the world, the disastrous effects are also spreading at a fast pace. And now, football is also getting affected because of the deadly virus which is spreading all over.
Recently, the Group B matches of Olympic Women’s Qualifying tournament are getting rescheduled. And once again, for the second time, the round 3 fixtures are postponed because of the epidemic Coronavirus.
The tournament was set to put the fire on stage in the city of Wuhan which is currently considered as the epicentre of the virus outbreak. Asian Football Confederation along with Chinese FA took a collective decision to relocate the matches to Sydney on January 26th. The countries participating in the tournament are Thailand, Australia, Chinese Taipei, and China in Group B.
On the other hand, the situation has worsened since the outbreak and travel restrictions have been imposed. Also, the quarantine procedures have been taken to reduce the ill effects of the Coronavirus.
According to the reports, all the Football Association have come into an agreement and have delayed all fixtures by 24 hours for match days 2,3 and 4. The remaining three matchdays are now scheduled for February 7th, 10th and 13th with Chinese Taipei already claiming a surprise win over Thailand on matchday 1 on the 3rd.
Football Federation Australia’s CEO stated:
“The outcome will ensure that there are three full days between matchdays three and four, guaranteeing that the health and safety of all participating players is put first, which is a priority of FFA”.
Even after taking the required steps to reduce the ill effects, it should be taken into consideration that these sudden changes will hinder China’s qualifying campaign. It is the weather that would affect the preparation for Chinese women.
Also, on the social media platforms, videos are reported which shows the former PSG midfielder, Wang Shuang practicing and training on the rooftop by repeating the drills by wearing the respiratory work. The posts have been met with admiration and affection from the Asian football community. The Wuhan native has been a critical member of the side and the team will surely be weakened without her.
Wang Shuang, the star player of China women's national team, is stuck in Wuhan, her hometown, and would miss the Olympic qualifying moved to Australia. Since it is not possible to find a football pitch for self-training, she went to the rooftop to play with her brother. pic.twitter.com/ebsn8tuM4K
— Titan Sports Plus (@titan_plus) February 1, 2020
It is decided that the top two teams from Group A and Group B will proceed to the playoff round. The two sides which are selected will be joining Japan as AFC representatives will be decided there.
