Bundesliga return a step into unknown
THE most likely outcome is the same as it’s been since Jürgen Klopp left the league – FC Bayern München will be crowned Bundesliga champions for the thirtieth time. That, though, is about the only bit of normality we’re going to get once the Bundesliga resumes this Saturday afternoon.
We had a wee taste, before the crisis really took hold, of what sport behind closed doors might be like. It was a pretty darned weird to be honest about it. Still most of us didn’t pay a huge amount of attention to those games played in front of empty stands in the Champions and Europa Leagues, bar the odd highlights reel.
Our focus instead was on Anfield where a gripping knock-out tie between the hosts and Atletico Madrid was played out in front of heaving and typically raucous grandstands. It’s kind of surreal now looking back on it that those games were allowed to go ahead in front of full houses when they were. Hindsight is 2020 vision and all that. Nevertheless it meant that the vast majority of European clubs went straight to full lockdown without the intermediate step of games played behind closed doors, making this a real step into the unknown for almost everybody.
What happens in Germany over the coming weeks is going to help shape the future of sport in the continent for the foreseeable future it’s no exaggeration to say. The Premier League and other European football leagues will be paying particular attention, but so too will the worlds of professional rugby, motorsport and even horse racing here in Ireland (although there was some action last weekend in Longchamps).
The Bundesliga’s return is unlikely to be flawless, however. Already there have been a number of controversies. Including a social media post by Salomon Kalou, which showed him breaking social distancing rules with team mates. The former Chelsea man has been suspended by his club, Hertha Berlin, but there does seem to be a fairly significant disjuncture between being suspended for shaking hands and slapping backs, while being required to participate in a contact sport.
There’s nothing clear-cut about any of this. There’s a very real chance that this attempt to return could be a house of cards. Already this week Dynamo Dresden, a Bundlesliga 2 side, have been forced into a two-week quarantine period after two of their players tested positive for the virus. All the same somebody has to go first and there are few better prepared places than Germany to make the attempt. Mistakes will, undoubtedly, be made. It’s up to everyone else to learn from them.