Blood-clot fears delay Astrazeneca roll-out
Change will wait for no one, not even the most successful football managers of the modern era
More than a dozen countries, including France, Italy and Germany, have suspended Astrazeneca’s Covid-19 shots because of fears over blood clots and other possible side effects.
The company insists there is no risk, and World Health Organisation (WHO) experts recommend the continued use of the vaccine, but the European Medicines Agency (EMA) was set to meet yesterday to decide on “further actions”.
On 1 March, Denmark became the first country to say it would suspend use of the Astrazeneca vaccine as a precautionary measure over fears of blood clots in vaccinated people.
Iceland and Norway followed and announced they were temporarily suspending its use.
Austria stopped using a batch on 8 March after the death of a 49-yearold nurse from “severe bleeding disorders” days after receiving it.
Several other countries also suspended the use of doses from the same batch of one million vaccines, which has been delivered to 17 countries.
Last week, Bulgaria suspended the use of the vaccine as it investigates the death of a woman with several underlying conditions who recently received the jab. An initial probe had suggested the woman died from heart failure and an autopsy found no link with the vaccine.
Thailand briefly delayed the start of its roll-out, but Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha received the jab on Tuesday. The Democratic Republic of the Congo, which was also due to start administering doses, postponed its campaign, citing “precautionary measures”.
Ireland and the Netherlands joined the list on Sunday.
Indonesia on Monday said it would “delay” the rollout, pending a WHO review into blood-clot fears.
In a major development, the German health ministry announced it too is halting the jabs, saying a closer look is necessary. President Emmanuel Macron followed, saying France would suspend use, pending a decision on the vaccine’s safety by the EMA.
Italy then added itself to the list, as did Slovenia, Spain, Latvia and Venezuela. Also on Monday, a health worker in Norway died of a brain haemorrhage after receiving the vaccine,
though no direct link to the jab has been established.
On Wednesday Lithuania followed the example of Sweden, Luxembourg and Cyprus by also suspending the use of the vaccine.
In his 2008 book, Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Football Tactics, Jonathan Wilson famously argued that it is the English, perhaps more than any other people, who are “unwilling to grapple with the abstract”.
Despite hosting a cosmopolitan league, its teams have routinely, through multiple eras, demonstrated susceptibility to novel and inventive tactics. How many champions have we seen crowned after foreign managers came in with new ideas and the open-mindedness to implement them?
This is not limited to the Premier League, of course. Having bred his Liverpool side on English shores, Jürgen Klopp successfully translated his innovations to the European stage — capturing the Champions League in the process.
But the funny thing about change is that it is only a matter of time until it becomes the status quo.
The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus argued that, just like the river, life is flux. Change is not a part of life, but rather life itself. Similarly, we can argue that football is not defined by its capacity to change, but represents change itself. We may have moved light years away from the 2–3–5 that was ubiquitous before the 1930s, but to think we are at a final destination is folly.
This is not news to anybody, but it’s simply remarkable just how visible the shift of the current tide is. As we embark on one last international break, the shifting of recent values is stark. It is reflected in league positions unlikely to drastically change in what’s left of the season.
Case study #1: Jürgen Klopp
There are any number of reasons that have contributed to the fall of Liverpool this year. Klopp himself would inevitably bemoan the injuries he’s had to manage — a winding line of stretchers that have carried out key players at crucial times. But this does not mask the sheer extent to which his strategies, once the most puzzling of conundrums, have been systematically figured out.
For about two years Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané delighted with their decisive inward running. Roberto Firmino, neither a false 9 nor an out-and-out striker, provided the enigmatic foil for their operations. Trent Alexander-arnold and Andy Robertson supported the back not as auxiliary aggressors, but as fulcrums in the attack. With the goal contribution burden lifted, Jordan Henderson’s midfield became masters of efficiency, recycling the ball with rugged, robust intent.
Almost overnight — or, more aptly, over the long night that was the onset of the pandemic — the ability to bewilder the opposition has dissipated. As recent results demonstrate, the sight of Alexander-arnold charging forward now inspires calm. The once-invisible lanes in which he operated have been marked and blocked off.
With their supply lines cut off, the forward trident has suffocated in the final third. The magic has been replaced with tedium: once able to crack any lock, their attempts now look clumsy as they bang their heads against the door to no avail.
Going the other way, the channels they leave open are ruthlessly exploited. As the wing-back runs almost parallel to his partnering attacker, the opposition is sending balls between them to run on to past the halfway line. These weaknesses were always there, but only in the past few months have the details to capitalise on them been honed.
Case study #2: José Mourinho
Mourinho owns a defensive record that will likely never be broken. In his first season in English football, he commanded a Chelsea side that conceded a ridiculously stingy 15 goals. His defenders may have been superb, but it was his novel approach that garnered results.
Mourinho, arguably more than any other individual, has challenged the notion of what it means to have possession. It goes beyond simply setting up for the counterattack. His sides are characterised by stifling opponents, grinding them down until frustration turns to sloppiness. His powers have undoubtedly waned in the past year, in recent years, they’ve been downright exposed. Taking Tottenham Hotspur to a struggling Arsenal last weekend, the Gunners put on a clinic in how to deal with their obstinate rivals.
They refused to dive into any traps, choosing instead to circle and pick off safe opportunities. There was pressure, but at all times, it was controlled pressure — never leaving room for the riposte.
Still, for 10 minutes, after Érik Lamela pulled off his incredible rabona, the Mourinho game plan appeared to be working … but all it took was one deflection for it to unravel. In the end, there was no doubt he was tactically outmanoeuvred; what was once a master plan now looked lazy and unambitious.
The message is clear: change will wait for no one, not even one of the most successful managers in the modern era.
After the upcoming break, it will be intriguing to watch the returning reactions. We already know that Klopp will be unable to retain the title that brought his city so much joy, but there’s still much to fight for. As a quirk of fate, it may be he and Mourinho who fight for one of the last Champions League spots. Whoever is first to adapt to the new abstract may well secure it.
Since January, 55-year-old Somadoda Fikeni, who was twice voted best political analyst by the South African media, has taken over the reins as commissioner of the Public Service Commission. Fikeni, who hails from an African royal family, talks to Nicolene de Wee about his challenging new portfolio, his days as a herd boy in the Eastern Cape, being homeless for three weeks in the US and his passion for photography
How would you describe your childhood in Lugelweni in the Eastern Cape?
I was one of six children — three boys and three girls — and we had an average village childhood experience. We had livestock, so I was a herd boy, and we attended the same school where my mother was a teacher.
We had to duck and dive when she insisted we do our homework because we were reading boxing magazines instead [laughs]. My father wanted us to become professional boxers, but my mother insisted that we study and obtain degrees.
I come from an African royal family, so we have a traditional, Christian and agricultural village heritage.
For example, when the lockdown was announced last year, I suggested to my wife and kids that we replace all the flowers in the garden with vegetables, and that project worked out quite well.
Having obtained numerous degrees over the years, in 2008, there were questions about the
validity of your doctorate in politics, which you completed at the Michigan State University in the US.
I was the chairperson of Walter Sisulu University, and we had to decide to appoint a vice-chancellor out of the three merging institutions. There was, however, a lot of fighting around this process. I handed one of my deans a transcript that I completed at Michigan State University, but I did not yet have the certificate.
There was a simple reason for that. When I completed my PHD, I was about to defend it [an opportunity for a PHD student to publicly present their research and answer questions about it from the thesis committee] when my father died. My supervisor, the university and my sponsors, were against my decision to attend his funeral in South Africa.
They argued that I also left in 1998 when my sister died, and I was supposed to write comprehension examinations.
Their argument angered me, and I decided to leave. When I returned to the US, the sponsors had withdrawn my scholarship. I then asked for emergency funding from the university to defend [my Phd] because you are no longer registered when a scholarship is withdrawn.
I was even refused a work permit. I was kicked out of my apartment, and I stayed in my car for three weeks. I was destitute and literally lined up for food and necessities at a local church. When I returned, and the university tried to contact me, I shut them out because of what happened and how I was treated.
Long story short: Michigan State University did eventually confirm that I’ve obtained my doctoral degree. Needless to say, in December, I was elected president of the Michigan State University African Alumni Association.
Do you have any hobbies, and what do you regard as the perfect family time?
I have three daughters and a son, and although they like my sense of humour, they know I’m strict. I’m a motivator, and I encourage my kids to dream beyond anything they think is possible. We always emphasise that they should never try to be like us but instead follow their own path.
I have a diverse taste in music, from gospel to opera and even Indian pan flute music. It’s like a mixed salad when it comes to my taste in music. Taking walks in the botanical gardens or just sitting next to water streams is a good way to clear my head.
I like watching stars, and I own a few telescopes, but my passion is photography. I trained as a photographer at the National College of Photography in Pretoria.
Because of Covid-19, my kids and I had to halt our training in drone piloting. I’m currently writing my grandfather’s biography, and when I look at the old pictures, I realise that a photograph manages to freeze a moment that you never lived in.
As the newly appointed head of the Public Service Commission, what do you bring to the table?
I am ready for this task because throughout my life, I always faced challenges, and I did my best to resolve them, even as a young student during the anti-apartheid struggle. I bring an academic background and real government experience to the table, and I do have the resilience to pursue what I think is right.
What gives me the greatest joy is not looking for green pastures, but looking for brown pastures that allow me to water them until they’re green. I always look for the most challenging situations because a well-functioning, non-challenging entity will definitely bore me.
As an author, public speaker and analyst on a range of issues, from local and international politics, to heritage and economics, what has been the highlight of your career?
For me, it’s a thread. When I come into space where there is injustice, I fight until I see justice. Or if there is a lack of transformation, I contribute to change for the benefit of others. That has been the main value proposition in my entire interface.
For example, during my chairpersonship at Artscape, the organisation appointed its first-ever black female chief executive, the first in 100 years.
My duty to serve and make a difference has been that one thread weaved throughout my different career engagements. In each portfolio I occupy, I always wish to give more to that position than the position gives to me.
What is your view on the current turmoil in the ANC in terms of factional battles, and how big is the ultimate threat to democracy?
The ANC has been the dominant party in the country, from the eighties and nineties until today. So its internal misfortunes and infighting have a negative effect on our democratic project and transition.
As the rulers of the country, it takes their focus away from the most strategic core issues of national interest, and they spend much of their energy looking over their shoulders during this time.
When you have divisions, you create patronage networks, and when there is wrongdoing, these networks are used to defend each other. So the corrective measures are hard to find.
‘What gives me the greatest joy is not looking for green pastures, but looking for brown pastures that I can water’