As countries across Europe head into a lockdown amid a Europe-wide second wave of coronavirus, football clubs across the continent will be dreading the next international break.
Teams are currently scheduled to take place in a three-game international break on the continent from the beginning of next term with players breaking bubbles to join up with teammates.
These mixed bubbles will then mix even further when they play each other creating a potential coronavirus nightmare for clubs when they return in late November.
Celtic were badly affected by Covid-19 positives in the last international break but so far Rangers have ridden their luck.
With a host of senior internationals set to head out the door in just over a week’s time, perhaps the Ibrox club won’t be so lucky heading into a hectic December.
As nations toil to keep infection rates down and the likes of England and France head into lockdown, the idea of sending footballers all over the world doesn’t just seem daft, it’s dangerous to the player’s health and to the prosperity of the game.
At the moment professional football has been given the green light to go-ahead despite everything which is happening outside its bubble.
If you break that bubble to play international games, it surely represents a major risk when these players return.
That’s a major risk that fixtures cannot be fulfilled, that players fall ill and that seasons are put on hiatus.
If cases continue to skyrocket over the course of the next week surely UEFA have got to prioritise matches in the middle of the pandemic.
Perhaps those Euro 2020 playoff games can be played out but is it truly necessary to fulfil Nations League commitments?
UEFA face a big decision with the ongoing disruption seriously bringing into question the sense of the upcoming international break.
