Hertha Berlin’s Salomon Kalou has been suspended and heavily criticised after broadcasting a live stream showing social distancing measures being flouted.
The Ivory Coast striker took his phone with him on Monday as he fist-bumped teammates in greeting, clapped hands with fellow forward Vedad Ibisevic, complained about a pay cut, and burst in on a teammate apparently being tested for the corona virus at the club’s facility.
The footage, which has since been deleted, was broadcast on the same day the German football league (DFL) reported 10 positive cases of COVID-19 among the country’s 36 clubs in the top two divisions.
It showed Hertha’s Jordan Torunarigha being tested by a physiotherapist who was wearing only a simple face mask as protection. The physiotherapist, David de Mel, repeatedly asked Kalou to “delete” the video, before the player walked away laughing, saying he was “only joking.”
The DFL sharply criticised the footage on Twitter.
“The pictures from Salomon Kalou from the changing room of Hertha BSC are completely unacceptable. There cannot be any tolerance for it — also with regard to the players and clubs who are adhering to the guidelines, because they have grasped the seriousness of the situation,” the DFL said.
Later on Monday, Hertha announced that they had suspended Kalou for the incident and said in a statement: “With his video, Salomon Kalou gave the impression that Hertha BSC’s players are not taking the required social distancing and hygiene guidelines of health services seriously. Hertha BCS would like to clarify that these were the actions of one individual player.
“The fact that other team members did not draw his attention to this transgression, and instead returned the greeting with a handshake, makes it clear that rules on social distancing must be enforced with even greater intensity.
“Hertha BSC has therefore decided to suspend him from training and playing with immediate effect.” –AP
