La Liga chief confirms clubs will resume group training from Monday
RESENDING WITH UPDATED SCRIPT
VIDEO SHOWS: SOUNDBITES FROM LA LIGA PRESIDENT, JAVIER TEBAS ON RESUMPTION OF PLAYERS TRAINING IN GROUPS, POSSIBLE RESTART DATE FOR LA LIGA, COMMENTS ON GERMAN BUNDESLIGA RESTARTING ON MAY 16, RECENT BARCELONA TRAINING FOOTAGE
SHOWS:
MADRID, SPAIN (MAY 17, 2020) (MOVISTAR - MUST COURTESY "EL PARTIDAZO DE MOVISTAR")
1. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LA LIGA PRESIDENT, JAVIER TEBAS, SAYING: (OFFICIAL TRANSLATION)
"It was laid out in yesterday's (Saturday, May 16) Ministerial Order and it will be good to be able to set all training routines on an equal footing. It's very important that every club has the same chance to be in good shape. It's not essential, but it's very important and we're grateful that it will be like that. It will affect all sports, not just football. It's particularly important for basketball as it will allow training sessions to go ahead in line with what the government dictates."
2. WHITE FLASH
3. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LA LIGA PRESIDENT, JAVIER TEBAS, RESPONDING TO QUESTION ABOUT THREAT OF PLAYERS BECOMING INFECTED WITH COVID-19, SAYING: (OFFICIAL TRANSLATION)
"When each autonomous community moves from one de-escalation phase to another, that's when people will have more contact with each other, and we have to be very careful. It's at this stage that we all must be very careful and focused on sticking to the health measures, when we go home, when we're with other people. It's practically impossible to get infected while training. With all the safety measures and precautions, we've put in place, it's practically impossible."
4. WHITE FLASH
5. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LA LIGA PRESIDENT, JAVIER TEBAS, TALKING ABOUT PLANNED DATE TO RESUME LA LIGA, SAYING: (OFFICIAL TRANSLATION)
"The ideal is date is the one that the Spanish health authorities determine. I'd like it to be as soon as possible, of course, but we don't have a set date. We must wait on the health authorities. Everyone wants to train for longer. I've heard all kinds of different theories, but it will be when the health authorities allow us, and we hope it will be as soon as possible in the time frames we're working on. We're working to restart LaLiga from June 12 onwards, but it will be up to the health authorities to tell us when we can start."
6. WHITE FLASH
7. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LA LIGA PRESIDENT, JAVIER TEBAS, SAYING: (OFFICIAL TRANSLATION)
"There'll be football every day. That's what I hope. We shouldn't have any problems playing on Mondays across the eleven rounds of matches we have left to play. I hope for some sense from the Spanish Football Federation on this, because it's very important for us to be able to give both our national and international broadcasters, and fans across the world, football on as many days as possible to ensure as little harm as is possible."
8. WHITE FLASH
9. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LA LIGA PRESIDENT, JAVIER TEBAS, SAYING:
"I'm very happy, and I've congratulated them because they've taken a very important step. We've worked hard on this together over the past months, we've exchanged protocols, ideas… we spoke once or twice every week. I'm very proud of the Bundesliga. It wasn't easy; they were the first to get up and running and they're an example to follow.
10. WHITE FLASH
11. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LA LIGA PRESIDENT, JAVIER TEBAS, RESPONDING TO QUESTION ABOUT WHETHER LA LIGA PLAN TO COPY BUNDESLIGA'S STRATEGY TO PLAY GAMES BEHIND CLOSED DOORS, SAYING:
"Practically, yes. We might change some parts of the protocol, smooth out some things that we can maybe do in a different way, but practically it will be the same.
BARCELONA, SPAIN (MAY 16, 2020) (LA LIGA HANDOUT - ACCESS ALL)
12. VARIOUS OF BARCELONA COACHING STAFF WEARING MASKS AND WIPING DOWN TRAINING EQUIPMENT
13. MEMBER OF BARCELONA COACHING STAFF WASHING HIS HANDS WITH HAND SANITIZER
14. PLAYER STRIKING BALL INTO NET DURING TRAINING DRILL
15. MARTIN BRAITHWAITE RUNNING
16. IVAN RAKITIC RUNNING
17. UNIDENTIFIED PLAYER RUNNING
18. FRENKIE DE JONG RUNNING
19. LIONEL MESSI RUNNING
20. LUIS SUAREZ TRAINING, FINISHES BY HITTING BALL INTO NET
21. VARIOUS OF GOALKEEPERS TRAINING
22. GERARD PIQUE TRAINING
23. ANTOINE GRIEZMANN TRAINING
24. OUSMANE DEMBELE TRAINING
25. SERGIO BUSQUETS RUNNING
STORY: Spanish soccer has edged closer to returning after a long pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic after La Liga president Javier Tebas confirmed clubs in the top two divisions will begin training in groups of up to 10 players from Monday.
The return to group training follows a government announcement on Saturday allowing sports teams to return to activity regardless of the status of the lockdown in their own region.
Previously, only teams from regions that were in phase one of the de-escalation of the national state of emergency would be able to return to training in groups. The provinces of Madrid and Barcelona are currently in phase zero.
All organised soccer in Spain has been indefinitely suspended since March 12, with Tebas previously warning that clubs would lose up to one billion euros if the season was not allowed to be completed.
Clubs began individual training earlier this month and the next step will be for them to move to full training before resuming matches without spectators, which must first be approved by the government's department for health.
Tebas reaffirmed that he hopes matches will start up again from June 12 and said he was feeling even more optimistic about being able to complete the season after the Bundesliga became the first major European league to resume action this weekend.
(Production: Tim Hart)