“Utterly absurd,” tweeted Gary Lineker. “Absolute joke,” said Gary Neville. On matters concerning England players and self-isolation, it seems that pundits from either side of the BBC–ITV picket line are aligned.
In case you missed it, Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell are required to undergo a period of self-isolation after spending over 20 minutes in the company of Chelsea teammate Billy Gilmour following England’s 0-0 draw against Scotland on Friday.
Gilmour subsequently tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday and although neither Mount, Chilwell or any England player, for that matter, has returned a positive test, the Football Association has confirmed that the duo are unavailable for selection after consultation with Public Health England.
Mount and Chilwell began their isolation on Monday after news of Gilmour’s positive test was announced and are scheduled to finish it on June 28, meaning they will miss England’s final group game against the Czech Republic and, potentially, their last-16 match.
Scotland’s players on the other hand, who have all spent time in the dressing room and team hotel with Gilmour, will be allowed to play in their final group game against Croatia on Tuesday night.
Like Lineker and Neville, England boss Gareth Southgate was perplexed by the situation. “I don’t want to cause a drama for Scotland, but, if you’re all in the dressing room together, where does everything stand?” he said to reporters on Monday, before the length of Mount and Chilwell’s isolation period had been confirmed.
The FA had initially said that Mount and Chilwell were isolating as a precautionary measure.
Why do Mount and Chilwell have to self-isolate?
The main point of contention surrounding the incident is that Mount and Chilwell each tested negative for Covid-19 on Sunday and again on Monday in tests conducted by both Uefa and England’s medical team.
However, PHE advised the FA that the pair should self-isolate after it was reported that they spoke to Gilmour for over 20 minutes in the tunnel at Wembley.
According to PHE, a person can be a “close contact” if they have “been within two metres of someone for more than 15 minutes” which applies to both Mount and Chilwell in this case.
That the conversation took place indoors rather than outdoors where transmission of the virus is believed to be much more likely has also counted against the pair.
What is a ‘close contact’?
According to Public Health England, a “contact” is “a person who has been close to someone who has tested positive for Covid-19”.
A person can be a contact any time from two days before the person who tested positive developed their symptoms (or, if they did not have any symptoms, from two days before the date their positive test was taken), and up to 10 days after.
A contact can be:
- anyone who lives in the same household as another person who has Covid-19 symptoms or has tested positive for Covid-19
- anyone who has had any of the following types of contact with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19:face-to-face contact including being coughed on or having a face-to-face conversation within one metre
- been within one metre for one minute or longer without face-to-face contact
- been within 2 metres of someone for more than 15 minutes (either as a one-off contact, or added up together over one day)
Why don’t Scotland’s players have to self-isolate?
Shortly after it was announced that Gilmour had tested positive for the virus and would have to self-isolate for 10 days, footage emerged of him playing table tennis with Andy Robertson and John McGinn in the days after the game at Wembley.
The video posted on Robertson’s social media accounts has since been deleted.
Scotland’s players will also have spent far longer in Gilmour’s company than either Mount or Chilwell did as the squad has been together in a bubble for the best part of a month.
However, PHE and the Scottish Football Association are confident that there are no issues surrounding close contacts within the Scotland squad in relation to the 20-year-old.
Additionally, players and staff members from each nation at Euro 2020 are operating in a “bubble” meaning that they cannot mix with anybody else outside of that, including family and friends.
As long as Scotland’s players abided by Uefa’s rules and stayed in their bubble, there is no requirement for them to self-isolate.
Scotland boss Steve Clarke, who embraced Gilmour after he was substituted against England, said that he had “no idea” how Gilmour contracted the virus.
Similarly to the entire England squad, Scotland’s remaining 25 players have all tested negative for the virus, meaning they are allowed to play against Croatia in the final game of Group D.
What has been said?
Southgate refused to criticise Mount or Chilwell for speaking to Gilmour after the game but did admit that the episode acted as a stark reminder of the need to stick to existing protocols.
“I’m not angry or p__sed off really and certainly not with the players, not with anybody. It’s just the fact of the world we’re living in at the moment,” he said on Monday.
“I think these sorts of things do serve as a reminder that we are under a different sort of spotlight to most parts of the community and at higher risk of being forced to miss matches or whatever else.
“I think the players, after what’s happened today, I don’t think they will need us to tell them but for sure we will.”
Both players posted on social media on Tuesday afternoon after it was confirmed they would miss England’s match against the Czech Republic.
“I’m absolutely gutted to have to miss tonight’s game,” Mount said. “I’ll be cheering on the boys as usual and ensuring that I’m ready to go again when called upon. Come on England!”
Chilwell said: “It’s a tough one to take and I’m gutted but I want to wish the boys all the best tonight in the game, I’ll be cheering you all on. I will make sure I am ready for when I can rejoin the squad. Lets go England!”
More from i on Euro 2020
- What the Premier League could learn from Euro 2020’s controversy-free referees
- The football nomad who became a hero for his role in saving Eriksen’s life
- How Ronaldo’s Coca-Cola stunt could change the face of football sponsorship
- In praise of Emma Hayes, the best pundit at Euro 2020 so far
- How to watch every Euro 2020 match on TV and online in the UK
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3j2eP5f
Post a Comment