Bunkers in Westphalia, which is no anti-Covid 'paradise'

The mask is not mandatory on the streets of North Rhine-Westphalia, the German land where the final phase of the Europa League will be played from this Wednesday. You only have to wear protection in closed places. And that is all about of the state with the most positives (about 50,000) and deceased (more than 1,700) in the entire country. In fact, here are four of the German cities where the pandemic has worsened in the last two weeks. In Duisburg, the ninth with the highest incidence of Covid per 100,000 inhabitants, Sevilla plays the round of 16 against Roma and he would also play a hypothetical quarterfinal against Wolverhampton or Olympiacos.

No, there is no coronavirus-free paradise in the northeast of Germany that encompasses the four venues where the second continental competition will be held until August 21: Cologne, Dusseldorf (the capital), Duisburg and the Gelsenkirchen miner. All within a radius of less than 100 kilometers. 2.5 percent of passengers who undergo PCR at state airports test positive. Catalonia, Navarra and Aragon are among the places of risk indicated by the authorities, thus, those who land or have been or passed through any of these communities risk a 14-day quarantine if they do not have a medical certificate that certifies them as free of coronavirus.

Madrid's Getafe and Andalusian Sevilla will get rid, for now. But not to meet locked in their respective hotels, from which they can only leave to train or play games. The armor includes the technical staff and all other employees of the expedition, who also pass the UEFA RCPs every other day. The highest European body does not allow the Press to have any contact with footballers or coaches, although it does allow, if the club in question approves it, that pre-match training sessions can be observed for 15 minutes. But from the rostrum, without even approaching the grass.

Some teams, such as Manchester United or Arsenal, skip that courtesy quarter of an hour. Accredited journalists must fill out a medical questionnaire every day, before going to any stadium. Although there, within and apart from everything else, they will continue to cover Press conferences electronically, away from the press rooms and their protagonists.