Reid cleared for Olympics

The OlyWhites have received a massive boost three weeks out from their opening game at the Tokyo Olympics with confirmation that All Whites star Winston Reid has been deemed available for selection. The veteran West Ham defender was last week named alongside Chris Wood and Michael Boxall as the three over-age players permitted in the under-24 squad but Reid was bracketed with Tim Payne pending his availability. Aside from Ryan Thomas, who is out injured, and Sarpreet Singh, who is focussing on his club commitments ahead of an imminent loan from Bayern Munich, Reid’s availability means coach Danny Hay has been able to select a near fullstrength 18-man squad. New Zealand’s men’s football team has never won a game at the Olympics.

The number of coronavirus cases has risen in Europe for the first time in 10 weeks, a trend that coincides with the return of crowded stadiums for the Euro 2020 quarterfinals and has prompted Germany’s interior minister to condemn football’s governing body. ‘‘UEFA’s position is utterly irresponsible,’’ Horst Seehofer said yesterday. ‘‘I cannot explain why UEFA is not being sensible . . . I suspect it is due to commercialism.’’ Crowds have varied in size from completely full, with 60,000 in Budapest, to 10,000-15,000 (25 per cent-45 per cent capacity) in other stadiums since the tournament began June 11.